89,175 people (2024 Census estimate, −2.4% since 2020)
3,507 square miles of land · 25 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
42 active community water systems list Mendocino County in the area they serve, reporting 60,628 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| UKIAH, CITY OF surface water · local government · CA2310003 | 16,067 served |
| FORT BRAGG, CITY OF surface water · local government · CA2310001 | 7,117 served |
| WILLITS, CITY OF surface water · local government · CA2310004 | 6,175 served |
| MILLVIEW COUNTY WATER DISTRICT surface water · local government · CA2310006 | 5,500 served |
| REDWOOD VALLEY COUNTY WATER DISTRICT surface water · local government · CA2310008 | 5,200 served |
| WILLOW COUNTY WATER DISTRICT buys surface water · local government · CA2310005 | 3,797 served |
| BROOKTRAILS TOWNSHIP CSD surface water · local government · CA2310009 | 3,632 served |
| NORTH GUALALA WATER COMPANY surface water · private · CA2310007 | 3,508 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 238 people were held in Mendocino County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2025). In 2020 it was about 256.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
12 school districts have their office in Mendocino County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $128.4 million — $107.4 million to run schools, about $18,383 per student, plus $13.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $35.6 million local (mostly property tax), $86.6 million state, $16.2 million federal. Long-term debt: $61.2 million.
Spent $40.2 million — $29.4 million to run schools, about $17,492 per student, plus $8.1 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $14.8 million local (mostly property tax), $23.7 million state, $5 million federal. Long-term debt: $54 million.
Spent $29.1 million — $26.6 million to run schools, about $17,364 per student, plus $988,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.8 million local (mostly property tax), $20 million state, $3.5 million federal. Long-term debt: $14 million.
Spent $23.4 million — $13.1 million to run schools, about $28,262 per student, plus $9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $13.1 million local (mostly property tax), $3.7 million state, $754,000 federal. Long-term debt: $28.9 million.
Spent $13.4 million — $11.1 million to run schools, about $25,452 per student, plus $1.9 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $2.4 million local (mostly property tax), $9.9 million state, $2.3 million federal. Long-term debt: $8.3 million.
Spent $12 million — $10 million to run schools, about $23,917 per student, plus $1.4 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $4.9 million local (mostly property tax), $6.4 million state, $1.8 million federal. Long-term debt: $6.2 million.
Spent $10.6 million — $10.5 million to run schools, about $29,670 per student, plus $82,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.1 million local (mostly property tax), $2.8 million state, $1.3 million federal. Long-term debt: $999,000.
Spent $7.4 million — $6.3 million to run schools, about $18,599 per student, plus $855,000 on buildings and equipment. Money in: $4.3 million local (mostly property tax), $3.7 million state, $949,000 federal. Long-term debt: $6.8 million.
And 4 more.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively High compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Mendocino County about $116.7 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Relatively Low; social vulnerability: Relatively High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
356 bridges in Mendocino County: 124 in good condition, 205 fair, and 27 poor (7.6%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| N STATE ST over YORK CREEK · built 1980 | 7,012 vehicles a day |
| U.S. HIGHWAY 101 over LONG VALLEY CREEK · built 1960 | 6,750 vehicles a day |
| U.S. HIGHWAY 101 over LONG VALLEY CREEK · built 1957 | 6,700 vehicles a day |
| NORTH BUSH STREET over ORRS CREEK · built 1972 | 4,692 vehicles a day |
| STATE ROUTE 1 over SALMON CREEK · built 1950 | 3,100 vehicles a day |
| MOORE AVE over WEST BRANCH RUSSIAN RIV · built 1958 | 2,776 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $216 million of work in Mendocino County in fiscal 2025, about $2,358 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Ballots mailed; drop boxes open: 2026-10-05. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-19. Early in-person voting: 2026-10-24 to 2026-11-03. Election Day: 2026-11-03. Last day for mailed ballots to arrive: 2026-11-10.
Source: California Secretary of State — Nov. 3, 2026 key dates · California Official Voter Information Guide — dates to remember · California Secretary of State — make a plan to vote
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Mendocino County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Mendocino County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of California: the state government and every county in California.
Nearby counties: Lake County (43 mi) · Glenn County (57 mi) · Colusa County (67 mi) · Sonoma County (68 mi) · Tehama County (80 mi) · Trinity County (86 mi).