Pacifica is a medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of California. With a population of 36,517 people and eight associated neighborhoods, Pacifica is the 215th largest community in California.

Pacifica home prices are not only among the most expensive in California, but Pacifica real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Pacifica has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

Of important note, Pacifica is also a city of artists. Pacifica has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Pacifica’s character.

A relatively large number of people in Pacifica telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 18.29% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Pacifica is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.

One downside of living in Pacifica is that it can take a long time to commute to work. In Pacifica, the average commute to work is 30.52 minutes, which is quite a bit higher than the national average. On the other hand, local public transit is widely used in the city, so leaving the car at home and taking transit is often a viable alternative.

Although the majority of commuting trips in the city are by private automobile, Pacifica is somewhat unusual for a city of its size for having a substantial number of people who use public transportation. For a lot of people, the subway helps to get to and from their jobs every morning, which benefits everyone in the Pacifica area by reducing both traffic and air pollution.

The citizens of Pacifica are among the most well-educated in the nation: 47.86% of adults in Pacifica have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree, whereas the average US city has 21.84% holding at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Pacifica in 2022 was $66,531, which is wealthy relative to California and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $266,124 for a family of four.

Pacifica is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Pacifica home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Pacifica residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Pacifica also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 18.26% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Pacifica include Irish, German, English, Italian, and European.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Pacifica's cultural character, accounting for 21.90% of the city’s population.

The most common language spoken in Pacifica is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Tagalog.