El Centro, California

Population

Steady. Within 1% of 2020, every year since.

44,382

people, the 198th-largest of California's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among California's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

7 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

67.1%

of 20,606 jobs located in El Centro are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Unemployment, 2026

The low came in April: 13.3%.

16.7%

in August 2026, the latest month released. A year earlier it was 17.8%.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, monthly, through August 2026. Not seasonally adjusted, so compare with the same month a year earlier. Sources: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics

Rent

Median rent is up 54% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,052

a month. California's median is $2,036.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $1,008 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Imperial County.

• $842 Tract 113.02
• $1,850 Tract 118.03

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent sits inside what local wages can carry.

$881–$1,322

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,052 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 533 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 81% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 79% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 1% to the 14,656 homes here.

93–206

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 56% less than California's.

$323,100

median home value in El Centro.

• $323,100 El Centro
• $734,700 California
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year