Mexican Population in Orange County, CA by City : 2025 Ranking & Insights

The Mexican population in Orange County, CA is recorded at 902,317 residents, based on the latest U.S. Census estimates. Each city in Orange County, CA has some Mexican population, but the county''s higher total suggests additional rural or non-municipal representation. The analysis below explores how Mexican communities are spread across Orange County, CA and comparable counties throughout California.

Top 5 cities with the largest Mexican population in Orange County

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  • 1
    Santa Ana
    Mexican population in Santa Ana is 221,023
    70.92% of Santa Ana population is Mexican
  • 2
    Anaheim
    Mexican population in Anaheim is 159,054
    46.16% of Anaheim population is Mexican
  • 3
    Garden Grove
    Mexican population in Garden Grove is 56,457
    33.09% of Garden Grove population is Mexican
  • 4
    Orange
    Mexican population in Orange is 46,883
    33.80% of Orange population is Mexican
  • 5
    Fullerton
    Mexican population in Fullerton is 46,317
    32.78% of Fullerton population is Mexican

Overview of Mexican population in Orange County

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey data document Orange County with 902,317 Mexican residents (28.5% of 3.2 million total county population), placing the jurisdiction at the 99th percentile nationally among counties and 90th percentile within California for Mexican population density, with demographic concentrations among the highest nationwide.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: Census Bureau's ACS data documents Orange County's Mexican demographic representation of 28.5%, exceeding the national average of 11.3% while remaining below California's elevated state average of 32.3%, placing the county above national concentration levels while below state demographic averages.
  • Share of Total State Population: Official American Community Survey data documents Orange County with 902,317 Mexican residents, representing 7.1% of California's total Mexican population of 12.7 million.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data shows Orange County maintains 1,138.1 Mexican Americans per square mile, representing exactly fourteen times California's average of 81.2 per square mile, establishing the county as an exceptional concentration center comparable to major metropolitan demographic areas.
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34 Cities in Orange County Ranked by Mexican Population

View Methodology
ACS data [1] confirm Mexican populations in every incorporated city in the county, with the largest counts in Santa Ana, Anaheim, Garden Grove, and Orange. The table below provides detailed figures, including total population, density measures, and demographic distributions, based on the current ACS data for all 34 incorporated cities included in this analysis*.
cities in Orange County, CA ranked by Mexican population count
Rank by Mexican Population
City
Mexican Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total Orange County Mexican Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Santa Ana 221,023 70.92% 24.50%
2 Anaheim 159,054 46.16% 17.63%
3 Garden Grove 56,457 33.09% 6.26%
4 Orange 46,883 33.80% 5.20%
5 Fullerton 46,317 32.78% 5.13%
6 La Habra 32,618 52.41% 3.61%
7 Costa Mesa 30,593 27.68% 3.39%
8 29,962 36.08% 3.32%
9 27,884 14.23% 3.09%
10 25,454 32.21% 2.82%
11 22,827 7.41% 2.53%
12 18,379 20.39% 2.04%
13 17,062 44.16% 1.89%
14 16,612 19.35% 1.84%
15 15,372 29.34% 1.70%
16 12,402 13.42% 1.37%
17 12,062 25.48% 1.34%
18 11,102 31.72% 1.23%
19 9,019 13.38% 1.00%
20 7,921 12.47% 0.88%
21 7,465 13.25% 0.83%
22 7,429 15.72% 0.82%
23 7,413 14.97% 0.82%
24 6,898 10.77% 0.76%
25 6,686 13.03% 0.74%
26 5,632 6.68% 0.62%
27 5,269 17.04% 0.58%
28 3,926 11.94% 0.44%
29 3,152 26.75% 0.35%
30 1,977 7.95% 0.22%
31 1,712 11.14% 0.19%
32 1,427 6.27% 0.16%
33 488 8.45% 0.05%
34 478 2.76% 0.05%
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Methodology

This ranking list is based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. The ACS is one of the most reliable sources for understanding population trends across different locations, and it provides estimates for various racial and ethnic groups at city, county, state and all geography levels down to the Census block group.
This list ranks city in Orange County, CA by their Mexican population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines Mexican population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their ancestry, meaning individuals can write upto ancestries when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as having Mexican ancestry, whether alone or in combination with another ancestry.
Here are a few important things to know about how ancestry is reported:
  • Some people identify as Mexican alone, while others identify as Mexican along with another race (such as Mexican and German).
  • We’ve used the “Mexican alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Mexican population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Mexican alone or in combination in city. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total City Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Mexican .
  2. % of Total Orange County Mexican Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Mexican population lives in that state.
To keep things simple, all population numbers have been rounded to the nearest whole number, and percentages are rounded to one decimal place. Because of rounding, some percentages may not add up to exactly 100%.

Things to Keep in Mind

Like all survey-based data, ACS estimates come with some limitations. Here are a few things to be aware of:
  • In places with very small Mexican populations, the numbers may not be reported at all due to privacy protections or sampling variability in the survey.
  • Since the ACS is based on a sample, the numbers are estimates, not exact counts. That means they may slightly differ from other sources like the decennial U.S. Census.
  • City that don’t have any reported Mexican population are not included in the ranking but are listed separately below for reference.
This ranking is meant to provide a clear, data-driven look at where Mexican populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

  1. 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.
  2. 2023.