Statistics

The following figures reflect statistics from the 2005-2007 American Community Survey 3-Year Estimates*.The page will be updated as more current information becomes available. Please visit the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Fact Finder website for more information.

Population

In 1880, the population of Pasadena was 391. One hundred years later, in 1980, the population was 118,072. By 1990, 131,591 people lived in Pasadena. According to the 2000 Census, Pasadena’s population increased 1.8% to 133,936.The California Finance Department estimates the Pasadena population to be 148,126 in 2008.

Age

According to the 2005-2007 American Community Survey Estimates, the median age was 36.9 years. The population by age is: under 5 years, 9,083; 5-9 years, 7,098; 10-14 years, 7,422; 15-19 years, 7,638; 20-24 years, 9,990; 25-34 years, 22,249; 35-44 years, 21,812; 45-54 years, 19,690; 55-59 years, 8,364; 60-64 years, 5,561; 65-74 years, 8,246; 75-84 years, 6,320; 85 years and over, 2,281.

Ethnicity

Pasadena is an ethnically diverse community. The 2005-2007 American Community Survey Estimates found 55.8% of Pasadenans are white, 33.0% are Latino, 13.4% are African-American, 12.7% are Asian, 0.5% are American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.0% are Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 17.5% are some other race. (Percentages may add to more than 100% because individuals may report more than one race.)

Language

English only is spoken at home by 55.1% of the population over age five. Spanish is spoken at home by 28.1% of the population over age five. The proportion of those speaking a language other than English at home is 44.9%; 16.6% of those do not speak English well.

Education 

The citizens of Pasadena are relatively well educated: The 2005-2007 American Community Survey Estimates for those that are 25 years of age or over, 85.5% are high school graduates and 45.6% have at least a bachelor degree or higher. The same 3-Year Estimates show 35,308 people are enrolled in school, from preschool or nursery school to college or graduate school. Of those, 17,504 are enrolled in elementary or high school; college enrollment is 13,770 persons.

Employment

There are over 100,000 jobs in a wide variety of industries in the City of Pasadena. According to the 2005-2007 American Community Survey Estimates, persons 16 years and older are employed as follows: 49.6% managerial and professional related occupations; 17.2% service occupations; 22.0% sales and office occupations; 5.6% construction, extraction and maintenance occupations; and 5.6% production, transportation and materials moving technology occupations.

Location

Pasadena is located 10 miles (16 kilometers) northeast of downtown Los Angeles. The city is bordered by the San Gabriel Mountains to the north and seven cities--La Canada Flintridge, South Pasadena, Arcadia, Sierra Madre, San Marino, Glendale, Los Angeles and unincorporated Altadena. The latitude is N. 34 9' and longitude is W. 118 10'. The elevation is 864 feet (263 meters) above sea level.

Climate

The climate is sub-tropical and semi-arid. According to Weatherbase, the average high temperature is 75 Fahrenheit (24 Celsius) annually. The average low temperature is 48 (9 C.). The overall average temperature is 62 (17 C.). The highest recorded temperature was 113 F. (45 C.) on June 17, 1917, while the lowest was 21 F. (-6 C.) on January 7, 1913. The average yearly rainfall is 51.8 cm. During the winter months of December through March, it is sunny or partly sunny 75% of the time. It has snowed twice in the City's history: January 13, 1932 and January 11, 1949.

Air Quality

The South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) reports that in 2007, Pasadena had no unhealthful ozone days, a decrease from 7 unhealthful ozone days in 2003 and 71 in 1992. The smoggiest month in Southern California is August.  For additional information, see the SCAQMD’s website at http://www.aqmd.gov.

 (An unhealthful ozone day occurs when the air has more than 120 parts per billion of ozone in one hour and there is enough ozone in the air for some people to experience headaches, nausea or shortness or breath.)

Size

Pasadena covers approximately 22.5 square miles, with an average of ten residents per acre.

Housing

The 2005-2007 American Community Survey 3-Year Estimates show there are 51,973 occupied housing units in Pasadena, consisting of 47.6% homeowners and 52.4% renters.  According to the 2000 Census, the median year that homes were built is 1954, although the 2005-2007 American Community Survey 3-Year Estimates show 29.4% were constructed before 1939. The average rent for a 2 bedroom apartment in March of 2009 was $1,416 per month according to the Beven & Brock Rent Survey.

Parks

Pasadena has 23 parks, totaling more than one thousand acres of parkland.  About 60,000 trees line the streets of Pasadena.  There are about 57,000 street trees and about 25,000 park and wild land trees, with an estimated value over 100 million dollars. Private trees are estimated to be over 60% of the total urban forest, or 123,000 trees.

Hotels

Pasadena has five major hotels: The Westin Pasadena, Hilton Pasadena, The Sheraton Pasadena Hotel, The Langham, Huntington Hotel & Spa, Pasadena, and Old Pasadena Courtyard by Marriott. For more information about these hotels and others, visit the Pasadena Convention and Visitors Bureau

Business 

Major employers include Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Huntington Memorial Hospital, Bank of America, Kaiser Permanente, Pasadena Unified School District, Pasadena City College, Countrywide Credit Industries, City of Pasadena, SBC, and the Ralph M. Parsons Company. A list of major employers may be found on the internet at: http://ww2.cityofpasadena.net/planninganddevelopment/technology/topemploy.asp

Cost of Living 

The annual average Consumer Price Index (CPI) for 2008 of Urban Consumers in the Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange Co. area was 225.008, an increase since an average of 17.338 in 2007. Please visit the Consumer Price Index Web site for more information.

*NOTE. Although the American Community Survey (ACS) produces population, demographic and housing unit estimates, it is the Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program that produces and disseminates the official estimates of the population for the nation, states, counties, cities and towns and estimates of housing units for states and counties.  For questions about this page, please email Library Reference Questions.

Last Updated:  July 23, 2009