Watsonville is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of California. With a population of 50,867 people and 22 associated neighborhoods, Watsonville is the 174th largest community in California. Housing costs in Watsonville are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in California.Because occupations involving physical labor dominate the local economy, Watsonville is generally considered to be a blue-collar town. 38.67% of the Watsonville workforce is employed in blue-collar occupations, compared to the national average of 27.7%. Overall, Watsonville is a city of service providers, sales and office workers, and farmers, fishers, or foresters. There are especially a lot of people living in Watsonville who work in farm management occupations (12.80%), sales jobs (9.43%), and office and administrative support (9.34%). One of the nice things about Watsonville is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities. The rate of college-level education in Watsonville is quite a bit lower than the national average among all cities of 21.84%: just 12.73% of people here over 25 have a bachelor's degree or an advanced degree. The per capita income in Watsonville in 2022 was $27,296, which is lower middle income relative to California and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $109,184 for a family of four. However, Watsonville contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Watsonville is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Watsonville home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. People of Hispanic or Latino origin are the most prevalent group in Watsonville, accounting for 83.46% of the city’s residents (people of Hispanic or Latino origin can be of any race). The greatest number of Watsonville residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Watsonville include English, German, Irish, Portuguese, and Italian. Foreign born people are also an important part of Watsonville's cultural character, accounting for 35.09% of the city’s population. The most common language spoken in Watsonville is Spanish. Other important languages spoken here include English and Tagalog.
