Sierra County, California

Sierra County population, land area and income

Sierra County had 3,113 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 953.2 square miles of land. It ranks 57th of 58 in California by population and 45th by land area. That works out to 3.3 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and in the bottom quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in California has 187,274 residents, so Sierra County has 2% of the typical county's population.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $67,675 is above the national county median among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Sierra County's population changed since 2020

Sierra County lost 116 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 3.6%. That ranks 54th of 58 in California for growth. The median California county changed by -0.6%, and the state as a whole by -0.2%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Sierra County recorded 70 births and 170 deaths, a natural change of -100. Net international migration added +0 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -17. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 100 people.

Where Sierra County is

The Census internal point of Sierra County is at 39.576900, -120.522000. It sits in UTM zone 10N. The map shades California's 58 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Sierra County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Sierra County

No incorporated place of 1,000 or more people has residents in Sierra County. Its 3,113 residents live in smaller towns, census-designated places, or unincorporated land, which the subcounty estimates do not list at this size.

Counties bordering Sierra County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 5 neighbors for Sierra County, including 1 across a state line. The most populous is Washoe County, NV, with 507,280 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• NV

  Washoe County, NV

  507,280 people

  92 mi NNE

• Nevada County

  102,195 people

  23 mi SW

• Yuba County

  87,469 people

  49 mi WSW

• Lassen County

  28,340 people

  79 mi N

• Plumas County

  18,834 people

  33 mi NNW

Distance to Sacramento and the nearest big city

Sacramento is 86.5 miles SW of Sierra County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Reno, NV (population 281,714), 35.9 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Truckee, CA (population 17,240), 23.5 miles away.

Sierra County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Sierra County is 06091: state code 06 for California plus county code 091. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $67,675.