2025

Cities in San Diego County, CA ranked by Pacific Islander Population

This list ranks the 18 cities in San Diego County based on their Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHPI) population, as estimated by the United States Census Bureau. It also highlights population changes in these cities over the past five years.
Updated Jan 24, 2025

Top 5 cities with the largest Pacific Islander population in San Diego County

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  • 1
    San Diego
    Pacific Islander population in San Diego is 14,763
    0.91% of San Diego population is Pacific Islander
  • 2
    Oceanside
    Pacific Islander population in Oceanside is 2,556
    1.18% of Oceanside population is Pacific Islander
  • 3
    Chula Vista
    Pacific Islander population in Chula Vista is 1,822
    0.51% of Chula Vista population is Pacific Islander
  • 4
    El Cajon
    Pacific Islander population in El Cajon is 1,412
    1.16% of El Cajon population is Pacific Islander
  • 5
    Vista
    Pacific Islander population in Vista is 1,376
    1.08% of Vista population is Pacific Islander

List of 18 cities in San Diego County, CA by Pacific Islander Population

View Methodology
Rank by Pacific Islander Population
City
Pacific Islander Population
% of Total City Population
% of Total San Diego County Pacific Islander Population
5 Year Rank Trend
1 San Diego 14,763 0.91% 51.96%
2 Oceanside 2,556 1.18% 9.00%
3 Chula Vista 1,822 0.51% 6.41%
4 El Cajon 1,412 1.16% 4.97%
5 Vista 1,376 1.08% 4.84%
6 Escondido 1,199 0.65% 4.22%
7 Carlsbad 1,073 0.82% 3.78%
8 994 1.41% 3.50%
9 653 0.91% 2.30%
10 568 0.50% 2.00%
11 531 0.77% 1.87%
12 456 0.82% 1.60%
13 418 1.23% 1.47%
14 230 1.10% 0.81%
15 188 0.57% 0.66%
16 139 0.20% 0.49%
17 35 0.25% 0.12%

List of cities with no Pacific Islander Population in San Diego County, CA

According to data from the United States Census Bureau, the following cities in San Diego County have no recorded Pacific Islander population*:
  • Del Mar
* These cities were not included in the ranking above, as they do not meet the population criteria. It is possible that a small population exists but was not reported or captured due to limitations or variations in Census data collection and reporting.

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 cities in San Diego County, CA by their Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander (NHPI) population, using the most recent ACS data available.

How the Census Defines Pacific Islander Population

The U.S. Census Bureau allows people to self-identify their race, meaning individuals can choose one or more racial categories when responding to the survey. In this ranking, we include everyone who identifies as Pacific Islander, whether alone or in combination with another race.
Here are a few important things to know about how race is reported:
  • Some people identify as Pacific Islander alone, while others identify as Pacific Islander along with another race (such as Pacific Islander and White).
  • Hispanic / Latino origin is reported separately from race, so someone can be both Hispanic and Pacific Islander .
  • We’ve used the “Pacific Islander alone or in combination” category unless noted otherwise, which gives a broader picture of the Pacific Islander population in each area.

How We Ranked the Data

This ranking is based on the total number of people who identified as Pacific Islander alone or in combination in cities. 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 Pacific Islander .
  2. % of Total San Diego County Pacific Islander Population – This tells us how much of the entire U.S. Pacific Islander 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 Pacific Islander 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.
  • Cities that don’t have any reported Pacific Islander 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 Pacific Islander populations are most concentrated while keeping the numbers easy to understand.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates.