Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.

Safety55#416/924
Economy57#399/925
Housing1#916/925
Health82#165/925
Healthcare62#347/923
Environment99#9/917
Education31#640/925
Infrastructure72#256/925
Community38#574/925
Leisure & amenities71#273/925

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Salinas, CA metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).

Strengths

Comfortable days · high46.7%
99/100California 34.8%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationAggregated from counties
Drought exposure · low0%
99/100California 9%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAAggregated from counties
Firearm deaths · low4.6 /100k
98/100California 6.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
Job growth · high3.7%
98/100California 0.9%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional data
Life expectancy · high81.0 yrs
96/100California 79.7 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
Suicide rate · low10.0 /100k
96/100California 9.9 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties

Weaknesses

Severe housing problems · high30.6%
0/100California 25.8%United States 16.8%2017-2021University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
Cost of buying a home today · high64.5%
1/100California 54.7%United States 34.1%Aug 2026Zillow Research
Unemployment rate · high7.9%
1/100California 5.5%United States 4.3%2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsPartial year
Home price to income ratio · high8.0×
2/100California 7.4×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
High school diploma or higher · low73.3%
2/100California 84.7%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Social associations · low5.3 /10k
5/100California 6.2 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties

Trends

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

Drought exposureImproving
81% (2021) → 0% (Oct 2025–Sep 2026)
−81 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
High ozone daysImproving
1 days (2017) → 0 days (2022)
−100%5 yearsUS 9 days → 7 days
Cost of buying a home todayWorsening
47.4% (Dec 2021) → 64.5% (Aug 2026)
+17 pts5 yearsUS 26.4% → 34.1%
Homicide rateImproving
8.5 /100k (2021) → 3.5 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−59%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
Firearm deathsImproving
10.8 /100k (2021) → 4.6 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−57%5 yearsUS 14.7 /100k → 12.1 /100k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
84.2% (2015-2019) → 93.8% (2020-2024)
+9.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%

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, Salinas, CA metro area improved on 16 of 32 measures with a comparison and declined on 5. 6 moved within the margin of error and 5 barely changed.

Earlier period
Latest period
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among metro and micro areas: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts. Periods differ by measure (most compare 2015-2019 with 2020-2024); each row names its own in its tooltip and in the table.

Improved16

Firearm deaths−43%8.0 /100k → 4.6 /100k
Household income+37%$71,015 → $97,230
Arts & recreation+25%3.0 /10k → 3.8 /10k
Real income+36%$49,960 → $68,024
Grocery stores+9.9%2.5 /10k → 2.7 /10k

Declined5

Violent crime+24%343 /100k → 425 /100k
Commute+1.9 min23.4 min → 25.4 min
Price / income+0.8×7.3× → 8.0×
Transit use−0.4 points1.6% → 1.1%
Pharmacies−5.4%1.3 /10k → 1.2 /10k

All 32 measures

Change of every measure of Salinas, CA metro area between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Arts, entertainment and recreation	3.0 /10k2020	3.8 /10k2025	+25%	Improved	82%
Average commute time	23.4 min2015-2019	25.4 min2020-2024	+1.9 min	Declined	13%
Average weekly wage	$1,0172020	$1,2232025	+20%	Improved	24%
Bachelor's degree or higher	24.7%2015-2019	28.2%2020-2024	+3.5 points	Improved	67%
Broadband subscriptions	84.2%2015-2019	93.8%2020-2024	+9.5 points	Improved	56%
Child poverty rate	19.4%2015-2019	17.7%2020-2024	−1.7 points	Improved	41%
Distance to an airport	54 mi2020	54 mi2025	0 mi	Little change	50%
Drug overdose deaths	21.0 /100k2020	20.9 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026	−0.5%	Little change	27%
Effective property tax rate	0.65%2015-2019	0.63%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	14%
Firearm deaths	8.0 /100k2020	4.6 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−43%	Improved	97%
Grocery stores	2.5 /10k2020	2.7 /10k2025	+9.9%	Improved	77%
Gyms and fitness centers	0.8 /10k2020	0.9 /10k2025	+19%	Improved	69%
High school diploma or higher	71.5%2015-2019	73.3%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Improved	53%
Home price to income ratio	7.3×2015-2019	8.0×2020-2024	+0.8×	Declined	23%
Homicide rate	4.3 /100k2020	3.5 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−19%	Improved	42%
Income adjusted for local prices	$49,9602019	$68,0242024	+36%	Improved	77%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4572015-2019	0.4642020-2024	+0.007	Within the margin of error	34%
Median household income	$71,0152015-2019	$97,2302020-2024	+37%	Improved	90%
New business applications	5.6 /1k2020	8.1 /1k2025	+45%	Improved	49%
Pharmacies	1.3 /10k2020	1.2 /10k2025	−5.4%	Declined	57%
Poverty rate	13.1%2015-2019	12.7%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Property crime rate	1,792 /100k2020	1,136 /100k2025	−37%	Improved	57%
Public libraries	0.6 /10k2019	0.6 /10k2024	+3.7%	Little change	83%
Public transit commuters	1.6%2015-2019	1.1%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Declined	39%
Rent as share of income	32.5%2015-2019	32.7%2020-2024	+0.2 points	Within the margin of error	54%
Rent-burdened households	55.5%2015-2019	55.6%2020-2024	+0.1 points	Within the margin of error	58%
Restaurants and bars	8.9 /10k2020	9.3 /10k2025	+4.4%	Little change	64%
Suicide rate	11.0 /100k2020	10.0 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026	−9.1%	Improved	77%
Traffic deaths	11.2 /100k2015-2019	10.9 /100k2020-2024	−2.9%	Little change	68%
Unemployment rate	11.2%2020	7.9%2025	−3.3 points	Improved	57%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	11.2%2015-2019	11.0%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	49%
Violent crime rate	343 /100k2020	425 /100k2025	+24%	Declined	11%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 708 metro and micro areas that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: Regional Economic Accounts; Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; Mapping Injury, Overdose, and Violence; American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates; Business Formation Statistics; Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master files; Public Libraries Survey; Fatality Analysis Reporting System; Distance to airports and intercity rail. 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 925 metro and micro areas 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.

Metro and micro areas like Salinas, CA metro area five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Salinas, CA metro area 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, Salinas, CA metro area itself moved −0.5 points in standing on average over the same 30 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

437,613 residents

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79
60–69

Income

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

Household income

132,489 households (±685)

Salinas, CA metro area
United States share

Under $25k11%13,927
$25k–50k14%18,302
$50k–75k14%18,252

Homes

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

Owners and renters

132,489 households (±685)

Salinas, CA metro area
United States share

Own52%68,993
Rent48%63,496

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

188,150 workers (±2,074)

Salinas, CA metro area
United States share

Drive alone70%132,218
Carpool9.9%18,579
Public transit1.1%2,145

Jobs and pay

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

The 10 largest occupations in Salinas, CA employ 61,540 people. 7 pay a median above the US median and 3 below it.

Above the US median
Below the US median

The largest occupations in Salinas, CA by employment, with median annual pay and how it compares with the United States
Occupation	Jobs	Median pay	vs USCompared with the US	Concentration
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse26,830 jobs	26,830	$36,700US $35,660	+3%	84×
Home Health and Personal Care Aides6,740 jobs	6,740	$34,320US $35,800	−4%	1.31×
Fast Food and Counter Workers4,180 jobs	4,180	$43,260US $31,200	+39%	0.9×
Retail Salespersons4,110 jobs	4,110	$37,970US $35,410	+7%	0.88×
Cashiers4,020 jobs	4,020	$37,080US $32,880	+13%	1.08×
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand3,890 jobs	3,890	$39,110US $40,240	−3%	1.1×
Registered Nurses3,180 jobs	3,180	$134,910US $97,550	+38%	0.79×
Waiters and Waitresses3,100 jobs	3,100	$35,540US $35,230	+1%	1.14×
Office Clerks, General2,790 jobs	2,790	$48,340US $45,010	+7%	0.95×
Packers and Packagers, Hand2,700 jobs	2,700	$35,480US $36,280	−2%	4.02×

Look up any occupation

Search more than 800 occupations and see what they pay in Salinas, CA.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025-05 (all industries and ownerships) bls.gov/oes

Reference period: 2025-05. BLS publishes metro areas, states and the nation (not counties or cities), so a county or city page shows its metro area.
Pay is not adjusted for the cost of living, so a higher median does not mean more purchasing power.
BLS caps the highest wages it publishes: where a figure is shown as “or more”, the real value is at least that much.
Some occupations (teachers, performers) are published by the hour or school year and shown here as an annual figure.

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.

Salinas, CA has 9,212 employer establishments, 212 for every 10,000 residents (0.85× the US rate of 248), with 116,784 paid employees at an average annual pay of $60,396. The Census Bureau also counts 28,349 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 9,212; 28,349 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 212; US 248
Paid employees: 116,784
Average annual pay: $60,396; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Salinas, CA by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	818	18.8	1.03×About typical	14,568	$29,732	163
Ambulatory health care services	766	17.6	0.85×About typical	6,481	$78,295	1,260
Specialty trade contractors	681	15.7	1.01×About typical	4,057	$70,112	1,209
Lessors of real estate	456	10.5	0.85×About typical	1,481	$59,182	2,805
Construction of buildings	405	9.3	1.23×About typical	2,064	$69,577	940
Full-service restaurants	380	8.8	1.14×About typical	7,385	$34,088	53
Services to buildings and dwellings	319	7.3	1.09×About typical	1,942	$41,626	2,153
Limited-service restaurants	305	7	0.88×About typical	5,469	$24,822	51
Building equipment contractors	268	6.2	1.03×About typical	1,532	$72,736	296
Offices of physicians	267	6.2	0.95×About typical	1,788	$112,636	314
Truck transportation	247	5.7	1.13×About typical	1,132	$67,152	468
Building finishing contractors	241	5.6	1.46×More than typical	1,303	$59,276	402

Rank places for an industry

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 434,107 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.
A metro area's figures are the exact sums of its counties.
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 contract spending

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $571.5M on contracts performed in Salinas, CA metro area: $1,318 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $571.5M; −29% vs FY2025
Per resident: $1,318; US $1,994
Sole-source: 5.6%; US 30%
Single offer: 17%; 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

Federal Acquisition Service$434.9M76%
Department of the Army$77.4M14%
Department of the Navy$29.7M5.2%
Defense Information Systems Agency$12.6M2.2%
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services$4M0.7%
Forest Service$2.2M0.4%
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration$2.1M0.4%
Defense Commissary Agency$1.8M0.3%

Top recipients

DELOITTE CONSULTING LLP$221M39%
PERATON INC.$62.1M11%
HUMAN RESOURCES RESEARCH ORGANIZATION (HUMRRO)$37.4M6.5%
BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON INC$34.9M6.1%
LEIDOS, INC.$22.3M3.9%

Spending by fiscal year

557.3MFY2017
639.7MFY2018
577.9MFY2019
728.2MFY2020
647.6MFY2021
623.5MFY2022
731.7MFY2023
1B

Top industries (NAICS)

Computer systems design and related services · 5415$382.6M67%
Educational support services · 6117$46.2M8.1%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$30.9M5.4%
Data processing, hosting, and related services · 5182$18.7M3.3%
Facilities support services · 5612$16.6M2.9%

Largest awards

AWARD OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY GLOBAL ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT SERVICES IT GEMS REQUIREMENT$487M
DELOITTE CONSULTING LLP· Monterey County, CA· IT & telecom· Feb 2, 2024 – Sep 29, 2026· 47QFMA24F0013
WORLD WORLDWIDE COTS HARDWARE SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE AND INTEGRATION SERVICES II CONTINUATION (WWHWSW II - MODIFICATION 01)$319.6M
PERATON ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS LLC· Monterey County, CA· IT & telecom· Sep 3, 2020 – Jan 20, 2026· 47QFMA20F0023
WORLDWIDE COTS HARDWARE SOFTWARE MAINTENANCE AND INTEGRATION SERVICES II (WWHWSW II)$172.8M
PERATON ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONS LLC· Monterey County, CA· IT & telecom· Aug 23, 2018 – Feb 19, 2026· 47QFMA18F0041

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.

Federal grants & assistance

Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.

In FY2026, federal agencies obligated $2.3B in grants, loans, direct payments and insurance for Salinas, CA metro area: $5,233 per resident (US $12,955).

Assistance · FY2026: $2.3B; −1.5% vs FY2025
Per resident: $5,233; US $12,955
Loan face value: $76.1M; lent or guaranteed
To individuals: 0.6%; counted, never named

Top programs

96.002 · Social Security Retirement Insurance$1.3B59%
64.109 · Veterans Compensation for Service-Connected Disability$160.9M7.1%
96.001 · Social Security Disability Insurance$106.1M4.7%
14.871 · Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers$102.6M4.5%
96.004 · Social Security Survivors Insurance$98.5M4.3%
93.774 · Medicare Supplementary Medical Insurance$64.4M2.8%
84.063 · Federal Pell Grant Program$51.7M2.3%
96.006 · Supplemental Security Income$46.1M2.0%

Top recipients (organizations)

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION CALIFORNIA$136.7M6.0%
SACRAMENTO, CA
HOUSING AUTHORITY OF COUNTY OF MONTE$103.5M4.6%
SALINAS, CA
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY$24.4M1.1%
SEASIDE, CA
HARTNELL COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT$19.4M0.9%
SALINAS, CA
MONTEREY COUNTY OFFICE OF EDUCATION

Organizations only: awards to individuals and county aggregate records count in the totals but are never listed. Grants to state governments recorded at the agency's own address are counted statewide, not in the capital's county.

Top agencies

Social Security Administration$1.6B70%
Under Secretary for Benefits/Veterans Benefits Administration$193.7M8.5%
Department of Veterans Affairs
Federal Highway Administration$137.5M6.1%
Department of Transportation
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services$118.3M5.2%
Department of Health and Human Services
Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing

Assistance by fiscal year

2.1BFY2021
1.9BFY2022
2.1BFY2023
2.2BFY2024
2.3BFY2025
2.3BFY2026

County aggregates

84%

Share of obligations reported only as county totals of many small awards (for example Social Security or Medicare payments), with no recipient named.

Source: Federal financial assistance transactions (Financial Assistance Broker Submission) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026 · FY2021–FY2026.

Counties in Salinas, CA

Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.

Monterey CountyCentral county59433,729

Principal cities

The cities the area is named for.

SalinasPrincipal city161,761

Largest cities and towns

By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.

Other metro and micro areas in California

Areas based in California, best score first.

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Places that share a border, best score first.

Similar metro and micro areas

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-09-29
Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08

JSON · /api/v1/places/M41500

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends

What changed in five years

Improved16

Declined5

Metro and micro areas like Salinas, CA metro area five years ago that improved

Who lives here

Age and sex

Income

Household income

Homes

Owners and renters

Getting to work

How people get to work

Jobs and pay

Look up any occupation

Local businesses

Federal contract spending

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards

Federal grants & assistance

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

Counties in Salinas, CA

Principal cities

Largest cities and towns

Other metro and micro areas in California

Neighboring metro and micro areas

Similar metro and micro areas

Data and sources

Improved16

Declined5

Age and sex

Household income

Owners and renters

How people get to work

Race and Hispanic origin

Education

Rent paid

Home values

Age of homes

Size of homes

Time to get to work

Look up any occupation

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

Top industries (NAICS)

Largest awards

What was bought

Top programs

Top recipients (organizations)

Top agencies

Assistance by fiscal year

County aggregates

By type