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El Centro

A city of 44,240 people in California
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The places and views that make it El Centro

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Outdoors in El Centro

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Map of El Centro: conserved land, trails and the top places to walk
Conserved land1.5%112 of 7,731 acres
Trails1.5 mi0.1 mi per sq mi
Parks & preserves163 conserved acres per 1,000 residents

Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US

Porch of Mexican worker's home in East El Centro, Imperial Valley, California1937
From El Centro’s story

Porch of Mexican worker's home in East El Centro, Imperial Valley, California, 1937

Photo · Library of Congress

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About El Centro

City in California, United States
1905Established
44,322Population
11.2 sq miArea
39 ftElevation

El Centro (Spanish for "The Center") is a city in and the county seat of Imperial County, California, United States. El Centro is the most populous city in the Imperial Valley, the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban area and principal city of the El Centro metropolitan area which encompasses all of Imperial County. El Centro is also the most populous U.S. city to lie entirely below sea level (−42 feet or −13 meters). The city, located in southeastern California, is 113 miles (182 km) from San Diego and less than 20 miles (32 km) from the Mexican city of Mexicali. The city was founded in 1906 by W. F. Holt and C.A. Barker, who purchased the land on which…

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From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Town numbers

ZIP code92243, 92244
Area code760
Living in El Centro

Housing in El Centro

$395K▲ 6.2% in a year Typical home value · Zillow

The typical El Centro home is worth about $395,000, up 6.2% in a year, 48% below the California typical home.

A balanced market

Buyer’sBalancedSeller’s
Days on market59
Sale-to-list98%
Sold in May7
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data CenterHousing market →

Safety in El Centro

C+

Safety Grade C+

El Centro reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 62% report less. Within California, it does better than 63% of towns.

Violent crime per 1,000
El Centro 2.5
California 4.3
U.S. 3.3
Property crime per 1,000
El Centro 9.1
California 18.2
U.S. 15.5
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to policeCrime & safety →

Schools in El Centro

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B

School Grade B

The public schools El Centro’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, outperform 61% of California’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the top.

#190Best public schoolsof 574 in CA
DistrictEl Centro ElementarySchools22

School data from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES, EDFacts). The School Grade is our own summary of state test results and graduation rates, graded within CA. Ratings are from neighbors.

Famous people from El CentroWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in El Centro.Meet them →

Where El Centro is

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Locator map of El Centro
Wikimedia Commons · Map: Arkyan · CC BY-SA 3.0

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Bordering towns

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Imperial El Centro Imperial
Compare side by side:El Centro vs Imperial

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El Centro

California · CA
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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01