Scottish Population in California by County : 2025 Ranking & Insights

According to U.S. Census estimates, the Scottish population in California stands at 453,079. Every county reports a non-zero population, with Los Angeles County leading at 69,602, followed by San Diego County (47,850) and Orange County (40,518). The combined total across counties is slightly lower than the statewide figure - a gap that may reflect rounding, data lag, or unassigned residents in certain census tracts. This analysis ranks all counties in California by their Scottish population, offering a localized perspective on how the community is distributed across the state.

Top 5 counties with the largest Scottish population in California

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  • 1
    Los Angeles County
    Scottish population in Los Angeles County is 69,602
    0.71% of Los Angeles County population is Scottish
  • 2
    San Diego County
    Scottish population in San Diego County is 47,850
    1.46% of San Diego County population is Scottish
  • 3
    Orange County
    Scottish population in Orange County is 40,518
    1.28% of Orange County population is Scottish
  • 4
    Riverside County
    Scottish population in Riverside County is 26,997
    1.10% of Riverside County population is Scottish
  • 5
    Sacramento County
    Scottish population in Sacramento County is 20,638
    1.30% of Sacramento County population is Scottish

Overview of Scottish population in California

  • Population Count and Percentage: American Community Survey documents California with 453,079 Scottish residents (1.2% of 39.2 million total state population), ranking the state at the 100th percentile nationally among U.S. jurisdictions for Scottish demographic representation.
  • Comparison to State and National Averages: U.S. Census surveys show California's Scottish demographic representation of 1.2% remains below the national average of 1.6%, positioning the state below typical U.S. demographic distribution patterns.
  • Share of Total National Population: Official American Community Survey records show California hosts 453,079 Scottish residents, representing 8.6% of the nation's total Scottish population of 5.3 million, establishing the state as a significant demographic concentration center within national boundaries.
  • Population Density per Square Mile: U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey data show California maintains 2.9 Scottish Americans per square mile compared to the national average of 1.5, indicating higher demographic concentration relative to national averages.
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55 Counties in California Ranked by Scottish Population

View Methodology
American Community Survey data [1] show Scottish populations across every county in California, with demographic distributions ranging from the highest population in Los Angeles County to the lowest in $rank_n_geo_name. The table below provides broader statistics, including total population figures, density measures, and demographic distributions based on current ACS data for all counties included in this analysis*.
counties in California ranked by Scottish population count
Rank by Scottish Population
County
Scottish Population
% of Total County Population
% of Total California Scottish Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 Los Angeles County 69,602 0.71% 15.36%
2 San Diego County 47,850 1.46% 10.56%
3 Orange County 40,518 1.28% 8.94%
4 Riverside County 26,997 1.10% 5.96%
5 Sacramento County 20,638 1.30% 4.56%
6 Alameda County 18,909 1.14% 4.17%
7 Santa Clara County 17,283 0.91% 3.81%
8 16,617 1.43% 3.67%
9 16,372 0.75% 3.61%
10 12,936 1.54% 2.86%
11 12,368 2.55% 2.73%
12 10,815 1.29% 2.39%
13 10,163 2.46% 2.24%
14 9,969 1.10% 2.20%
15 8,859 1.19% 1.96%
16 8,525 0.84% 1.88%
17 7,390 2.63% 1.63%
18 7,256 1.63% 1.60%
19 7,105 0.90% 1.57%
20 6,490 2.51% 1.43%
21 6,461 2.43% 1.43%
22 5,364 2.79% 1.18%
23 5,282 0.96% 1.17%
24 5,242 2.50% 1.16%
25 4,744 1.09% 1.05%
26 4,550 1.01% 1.00%
27 4,363 2.40% 0.96%
28 3,981 2.94% 0.88%
29 3,761 1.73% 0.83%
30 2,839 3.13% 0.63%
31 2,785 0.59% 0.61%
32 2,494 2.43% 0.55%
33 2,170 1.59% 0.48%
34 2,113 3.85% 0.47%
35 1,948 0.68% 0.43%
36 1,808 1.14% 0.40%
37 1,641 2.50% 0.36%
38 1,578 2.32% 0.35%
39 1,522 1.54% 0.34%
40 1,434 3.12% 0.32%
41 1,206 1.45% 0.27%
42 1,179 4.32% 0.26%
43 1,126 2.57% 0.25%
44 1,082 0.71% 0.24%
45 834 2.03% 0.18%
46 749 1.13% 0.17%
47 625 3.32% 0.14%
48 606 1.94% 0.13%
49 594 0.33% 0.13%
50 486 3.69% 0.11%
51 435 2.22% 0.10%
52 376 1.31% 0.08%
53 272 3.15% 0.06%
54 237 1.08% 0.05%
55 56 2.05% 0.01%
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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 county in California by their Scottish population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census defines Scottish 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 Scottish 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 Scottish alone, while others identify as Scottish along with another race (such as Scottish and German).
  • We’ve used the “Scottish alone or in any combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Scottish population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Scottish alone or in combination in county. To provide additional context, we’ve also included two key percentages:
  1. % of Total County Population – This shows what percentage of the total state population identifies as Scottish .
  2. % of Total California Scottish Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Scottish 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 Scottish 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.
  • County that don’t have any reported Scottish 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 Scottish populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

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