Rancho San Diego is a census-designated place (CDP) in the East County region of San Diego County, California. The population was 21,858 at the 2020 census, up from 21,208 at the 2010 census. The area was developed as subdivisions beginning in the 1970s.
Rancho San Diego is located at (32.765985, -116.921477). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land. The chance of earthquake damage in Rancho San Diego is much lower than California average and is much higher than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Rancho San Diego is about the same as California average and is much lower than the national average. The average temperature of Rancho San Diego is 64.73 ðF.
According to the Köppen climate classification system, Rancho San Diego has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csa" on climate maps.
Rancho San Diego was first listed as a census designated place in the 1990 U.S. census.
As of the 2020 census, Rancho San Diego had a population of 21,858 and a population density of . The median age was 42.7 years; 20.7% were under the age of 18, 8.4% were 18 to 24, 23.3% were 25 to 44, 27.2% were 45 to 64, and 20.5% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 91.0 males age 18 and over.
The census reported that 99.5% of residents lived in households, 0.4% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0.1% were institutionalized. 99.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.2% lived in rural areas.
There were 7,854 households; 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 58.4% were married-couple households, 13.5% had a male householder with no spouse or partner present, and 24.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 5,865 families (74.7% of all households).
There were 8,138 housing units at an average density of , of which 7,854 (96.5%) were occupied. Of these, 69.7% were owner-occupied, and 30.3% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.6%, and the rental vacancy rate was 4.0%.
In 2023, the US Census Bureau estimated that of those aged 25 or older, 92.8% were high school graduates and 44.5% had a bachelor's degree.
The median household income in 2023 was $118,431, and the per capita income was $55,280. About 6.6% of families and 6.9% of the population were below the poverty line.
The census reported that 21,164 people (99.8% of the population) lived in households, 44 (0.2%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and no one was institutionalized.
There were 7,830 households, 2,659 (34.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 4,605 (58.8%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 834 (10.7%) had a female householder with no husband present, 330 (4.2%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 311 (4.0%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 62 (0.8%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,653 households (21.1%) were one person and 713 (9.1%) had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.70. There were 5,769 families (73.7% of households); the average family size was 3.16.
The age distribution was 4,681 people (22.1%) under the age of 18, 2,124 people (10%) aged 18 to 24, 4,867 people (22.9%) aged 25 to 44, 6,688 people (31.5%) aged 45 to 64, and 2,848 people (13.4%) who were 65 or older. The median age was 41.2 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.3 males.
There were 8,152 housing units at an average density of 936.9 per square mile, of the occupied units 5,580 (71.3%) were owner-occupied and 2,250 (28.7%) were rented. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.8%; the rental vacancy rate was 6.5%. 15,530 people (73.2% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 5,634 people (26.6%) lived in rental housing units.
Estimated median household income in 2011: $83,458 (it was $68,185 in 2000).
Mean prices in 2011: All housing units: $620,385; Detached houses: $699,869; Townhouses or other attached units: $348,104; In 2-unit structures: $299,548; In 3-to-4-unit structures: $275,297; In 5-or-more-unit structures: $277,349; Mobile homes: $93,180
Median household income for houses/condos with a mortgage: $107,787
Median household income for apartments without a mortgage: $69,528
Median gross rent in 2011: $1,614.
The residents of Rancho San Diego are upper-middle-income, making it an above-average-income community. Rancho San Diego has a higher income than 64.4% of the neighborhoods in America. 28.7% of its working population is employed in executive, management, and professional occupations. The most common language spoken in Rancho San Diego is English, spoken by 72.2% of households. Other important languages spoken here include Arabic, Aramaic, and Spanish.
In the California State Legislature, Rancho San Diego is in , and in .
In the United States House of Representatives, Rancho San Diego is in .
County Service Area No. 26 (Rancho San Diego) provides landscape and open-space maintenance.
Rancho San Diego is served by Cajon Valley Union School District and Grossmont Union High School District.
Steele Canyon High School and Valhalla High School are the primary high schools in this location.
Rancho San Diego is also home to Cuyamaca College, as well as Kumeyaay Community College.