Census-designated place · San Luis Obispo County, California

Cambria, California

Cambria is a census-designated place in San Luis Obispo County, California, part of the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA metro area. It has 5,978 residents. Cambria, California has a quality-of-life score of 60 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #6,322 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within California it ranks #304 of 1,062 cities and towns. It ranks best on public EV charging ports (high), mental health providers (high) and comfortable days (high). It ranks worst on rent-burdened households (high), home price to income ratio (high) and natural hazard risk (high).

60Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #6,322 of 15,651 cities and towns
California: #304 of 1,062 in CA
Population: 5,978 (2020-2024)
Land area: 8 mi²
Density: 710.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 0610074

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety58#6,572/15,637
Economy51#7,630/15,631
Housing1#14,793/14,977
Health81#2,899/15,609
Healthcare71#4,514/15,650
Environment49#7,927/15,453
Education41#9,277/15,649
Infrastructure67#5,215/15,650
Community54#7,178/15,651
Leisure & amenities94#987/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Cambria, California ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “San Luis Obispo County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Public EV charging ports · high29.0 /10k
99/100California 17.4 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergySan Luis Obispo County value
Mental health providers · high756 /100k
97/100California 487 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSan Luis Obispo County value
Comfortable days · high44.8%
97/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSan Luis Obispo County value
Drought exposure · low0%
96/100California 9%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAASan Luis Obispo County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · low6 mi
94/100California 10 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauSan Luis Obispo County value
Primary care shortage · low0.0
90/100California 2.6United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSan Luis Obispo County value

Weaknesses

Rent-burdened households · high72.0%
0/100California 55.3%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Home price to income ratio · high9.4×
1/100California 7.4×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Natural hazard risk · high95.8
4/100California 87.32025Federal Emergency Management AgencySan Luis Obispo County value
Students per teacher · high20.8×
7/100California 21.7×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsSan Luis Obispo County value
High school diploma or higher · low92.8%
12/100California 84.7%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Rent as share of income · high43.0%
12/100California 32.8%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
5,647 (2015-2019) → 5,978 (2020-2024)
+5.9%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Median household incomeImproving
$70,000 (2015-2019) → $99,147 (2020-2024)
+42%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
40.9% (2015-2019) → 48.8% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
64.3% (2015-2019) → 72.0% (2020-2024)
+7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
12.2% (2015-2019) → 19.7% (2020-2024)
+7.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
37.0% (2015-2019) → 43.0% (2020-2024)
+6 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Cambria, California improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Bachelor's++7.9 points40.9% → 48.8%
Household income+42%$70,000 → $99,147

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Cambria, California between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.9 min2015-2019	21.4 min2020-2024	−1.5 min	Within the margin of error	66%
Bachelor's degree or higher	40.9%2015-2019	48.8%2020-2024	+7.9 points	Improved	83%
Broadband subscriptions	90.9%2015-2019	93.1%2020-2024	+2.2 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Effective property tax rate	0.70%2015-2019	0.68%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	21%
High school diploma or higher	93.7%2015-2019	92.8%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Home price to income ratio	9.5×2015-2019	9.4×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	83%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4112015-2019	0.4532020-2024	+0.042	Within the margin of error	20%
Median household income	$70,0002015-2019	$99,1472020-2024	+42%	Improved	76%
Poverty rate	9.6%2015-2019	10.5%2020-2024	+0.9 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Rent as share of income	37.0%2015-2019	43.0%2020-2024	+6 points	Within the margin of error	18%
Rent-burdened households	64.3%2015-2019	72.0%2020-2024	+7.7 points	Within the margin of error	29%
Unemployment rate	6.3%2015-2019	8.3%2020-2024	+2 points	Within the margin of error	16%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	12.2%2015-2019	19.7%2020-2024	+7.5 points	Within the margin of error	6%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Cambria, California five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Cambria, California in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Cambria, California itself moved −5.5 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

5,978 residents (±679)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79
60–69
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 50–59 men (−3.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

5,978 residents (±679)

Cambria, California
California share

White66%3,960
Black0.1%†6
Hispanic or Latino26%†1,543

Education

4,989 residents (±416)

Cambria, California
California share

No high school diploma7.2%†359
High school or GED15%†736
Some college21%1,032

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

2,877 households (±243)

Cambria, California
California share

Under $25k13%†365
$25k–50k14%†408
$50k–75k12%†343
$75k–100k12%†344
$100k–150k25%713
$150k–200k6.2%†178
$200k or more18%526

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $200k or more (+11.7 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

2,877 households (±243)

Cambria, California
California share

Own78%2,247
Rent22%†630

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

610 households (±202)

Cambria, California
California share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,0002.1%†13
$1,000–1,50019%†113

Home values

2,247 homes (±212)

Cambria, California
California share

Under $150k1.6%†36
$150k–250k0.0%0
$250k–400k1.6%†36

Age of homes

4,062 homes (±261)

Cambria, California
California share

2010 or later2.4%†97
2000–200910%†407
1980–199956%2,277

Size of homes

4,062 homes (±261)

Cambria, California
California share

Studio1.3%†51
1 bedroom4.7%†191
2 bedrooms38%1,550

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

2,206 workers (±397)

Cambria, California
California share

Drive alone65%1,424
Carpool7.6%†168
Public transit0.4%†8
Walk3.1%†68
Bike1.1%†25
Work from home23%†503
Other0.5%†10

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

1,703 workers (±369)

Cambria, California
California share

Under 15 min53%896
15–29 min22%†373
30–44 min11%†183

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of San Luis Obispo County, the county holding most of Cambria's residents.

San Luis Obispo County has 8,962 employer establishments, 318 for every 10,000 residents (1.28× the US rate of 248; 1.21× California's), with 98,720 paid employees at an average annual pay of $57,731. The Census Bureau also counts 26,183 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 8,962; 26,183 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 318; US 248 · California 263
Paid employees: 98,720
Average annual pay: $57,731; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of San Luis Obispo County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	870	30.8	1.48×More than typical	6,329	$72,302	1,477
Restaurants and other eating places	775	27.5	1.50×More than typical	12,770	$28,457	104
Specialty trade contractors	684	24.2	1.57×More than typical	4,926	$70,552	1,316
Lessors of real estate	463	16.4	1.33×More than typical	1,687	$56,256	3,047
Construction of buildings	363	12.9	1.70×More than typical	1,846	$68,824	853
Full-service restaurants	351	12.4	1.62×More than typical	6,653	$30,949	44
Offices of physicians	341	12.1	1.87×More than typical	1,789	$104,366	275
Limited-service restaurants	294	10.4	1.30×More than typical	4,621	$26,663	31
Services to buildings and dwellings	274	9.7	1.44×More than typical	2,561	$42,667	1,278
Offices of other health practitioners	240	8.5	1.40×More than typical	1,227	$42,692	863
Building equipment contractors	235	8.3	1.38×More than typical	1,883	$73,131	278
Management, scientific and technical consulting	235	8.3	1.24×About typical	956	$83,677	1,212

Rank places for an industry Open San Luis Obispo County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 282,225 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Cambria, California: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

5.6KFY2022
40.6KFY2024
0FY2025

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Cambria, California, so they do not add up across cities.

Cambria, California's figures are part of those of San Luis Obispo County, CA ($42.7M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Cambria is mostly in San Luis Obispo County.

See federal money in San Luis Obispo County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Cambria, California is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).