Rio Rico is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 18,962 at the 2010 census. The Rio Rico CDP replaced the former CDPs of Rio Rico Northwest, Rio Rico Northeast, Rio Rico Southwest, and Rio Rico Southeast.
Rio Rico is located in Santa Cruz County, north of Nogales at the confluence of Sonoita Creek and the Santa Cruz River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the community has an area of 62.3 square miles (161.2 km), all land.
Rio Rico includes the site of the ghost town of Calabasas, Arizona.
As of the 2020 census, Rio Rico had a population of 20,549. The median age was 35.8 years. 29.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.4% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.1 males age 18 and over.
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 6,479 households in Rio Rico, of which 45.9% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 60.1% were married-couple households, 12.2% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 21.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 14.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 6,822 housing units, of which 5.0% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.0% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.5%.
As of the 2010 census, there were 18,962 people living in the community, making it Santa Cruz County's second-largest community after its historic population center and county seat, Nogales. The population density was . There were 6,356 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the community was 85.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.4% Black or African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, and 1.8% from two or more races. Approximately 11.4% of the population was non-Hispanic white.