Health Profile of California
California Health Score
The Map AI Health Index is a score that reflects local life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and physical environment to help you quickly compare the overall health and well-being of different areas.
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B
California Around averageHealthier than 76% of states in US
Source: Map AI Methodology
Healthiest and Least Healthy Counties in California
- San Francisco County (106% of U.S. avg)
- San Mateo County (106% of U.S. avg)
- Santa Clara County (106% of U.S. avg)
- Lake County (99% of U.S. avg)
- Imperial County (99% of U.S. avg)
- Tulare County (99% of U.S. avg)
Ranked by the Map AI Health Index, which combines life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and physical environment.
General Health Overview
| Metric | California | US Average |
|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 79.6 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 6.6% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 16.4% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in California is 79.6 years, about 1.3 years longer than the US average of 78.3 years. The uninsured rate is 6.6%, lower than the US average of 8.4%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 16.4% of residents, higher than the US average of 16.3%.
Population by Age
Older residents
12,778,658 residents in California are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 743,668 270,940 men · 472,728 women
- 75–84 1,695,413 738,266 men · 957,147 women
- 65–74 3,194,031 1,489,000 men · 1,705,031 women
- 50–64 7,145,547 3,564,164 men · 3,581,383 women
Younger residents
8,330,434 residents in California are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 2,671,944 1,372,082 boys · 1,299,862 girls
- 7–12 2,463,885 1,264,952 boys · 1,198,932 girls
- 3–7 1,831,457 937,824 boys · 893,633 girls
- 0–3 1,363,148 697,198 boys · 665,950 girls
About 1,525,643 residents in California (3.9% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 79.6 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | California | US Average |
|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 10.5% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 6.3% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 6.4% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 30.6% | 34.3% |
On average, diseases in California are about the same as in US.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | California | US Average |
|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 13.9% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 18.0% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 21.9% | 25.1% |
The rate of smoking in California is about 27% lower than in US.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 42.7 million cigarettes a day, 1.3 billion a month, or 15.6 billion a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 469.6 million minutes a day and 171.4 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in California is 79.6 years, that's roughly equivalent to 11 lifetimes a day, or 4,095 lifetimes a year.
* Source: Shaw M, Mitchell R, Dorling D. "Time for a smoke? One cigarette reduces your life by 11 minutes." BMJ. 2000;320:53.
Illustrative only. This is not an estimate of how many people actually die from smoking each day or year - it's a rough, order-of-magnitude comparison meant to help grasp the scale of smoking in this area. We take no responsibility for any decisions made based on this figure.
Air Quality
| Metric | California | US Average |
|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 7.63 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 7.6 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in California is good — generally safe air quality for the vast majority of residents.
California Health Compared With Nearby States
California is the largest of the 6 states compared here, 39,245,658 residents against a local median of 3,390,702. Where California breaks from the states next to it is uninsured, sitting 27% below the local median of 9.1% at 6.6%. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
The states themselves spread 5.5% on uninsured, so California sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. California has the 2nd lowest uninsured of the 6 areas compared here.
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, California has an overall health index grade of B, making it somewhat better than the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in California.
How healthy is California?
California has a Map AI Health Index grade of B, based on life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment; a B grade means residents are somewhat healthier than the U.S. average.
Is California one of the healthiest states in the U.S.?
California ranks 13th healthiest out of 51 states in the U.S. by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
What is the average lifespan in California?
People in California can expect to live 79.6 years on average, 1.3 years longer than the US average of 78.3.
How many people lack health insurance in California?
6.6% of residents in California have no health insurance, about 1 in 15 people, 1.8 points below the US rate of 8.4%.
What percentage of California residents are obese?
30.6% of adults in California are classified as obese, about 1 in 3, 3.7 points below the US rate of 34.3%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in California go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 42.7 million cigarettes a day, 1.3 billion a month, or 15.6 billion a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 469.6 million minutes a day and 171.4 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in California is 79.6 years, that's roughly equivalent to 11 lifetimes a day, or 4,095 lifetimes a year.
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