| | Santa Maria, CA | Arcata, CA | United States |
| Population | 109,309 | 19,038 | 329,725,481 |
| Female Population | 50.3% | 48.6% | 50.5% |
| Male Population | 49.7% | 51.4% | 49.5% |
| Median Age | 29.2 | 26.9 | 38.4 |
| space3 | | | |
| Population - 2010 | 99,633 | 17,685 | 309,327,143 |
| Population - 2000 | 77,423 | 16,651 | 285,036,114 |
| Population - 1990 | 61,284 | 15,197 | 251,960,433 |
| Pop. 2000 to Now | 36.7% | 8.4% | 15.6% |
| Pop. 1990 to Now | 72.7% | 18.7% | 30.8% |
| space4 | | | |
| Population Density | 4,797.6 | 2,031.6 | 93.4 |
| Land Area | 22.8 | 9.4 | 3,531,905.4 |
| Water Area | 0.6 | 2.1 | 264,836.8 |
| space | | | |
| Est. Total Population By Age | | | |
| | Santa Maria, CA | Arcata, CA | United States |
| Age 0 to 4 | 9.6% | 2.5% | 5.9% |
| Age 5 to 9 | 8.4% | 2.0% | 6.1% |
| Age 10 to 14 | 8.6% | 3.8% | 6.6% |
| Age 15 to 17 | 4.7% | 2.8% | 3.9% |
| Age 18 to 20 | 5.4% | 17.6% | 4.0% |
| Age 21 to 24 | 7.4% | 16.5% | 5.2% |
| Age 25 to 34 | 13.6% | 17.0% | 13.8% |
| Age 35 to 44 | 12.9% | 12.3% | 12.9% |
| Age 45 to 54 | 11.0% | 6.2% | 12.6% |
| Age 55 to 59 | 4.6% | 3.9% | 6.7% |
| Age 60 to 64 | 3.8% | 4.1% | 6.3% |
| Age 65 to 74 | 5.5% | 8.2% | 9.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 2.7% | 1.8% | 4.5% |
| Age 85 and over | 1.9% | 1.3% | 1.9% |
| space1 | | | |
| Race | | | |
| | Santa Maria, CA | Arcata, CA | United States |
| White | 15.1% | 69.3% | 59.4% |
| Black | 1.1% | 1.8% | 12.2% |
| Asian | 4.5% | 3.7% | 5.6% |
| Native American | 0.2% | 1.0% | 0.6% |
| Hawaiian, Pacific Islander | 0.0% | 0.9% | 0.2% |
| Other | 0.1% | 1.5% | 0.4% |
| Two or More Races | 1.6% | 7.5% | 3.2% |
| Hispanic | 77.4% | 14.4% | 18.4% |
| space2 | | | |
| Marriage & Family | | | |
| | Santa Maria, CA | Arcata, CA | United States |
| Married Population | 46.0% | 21.9% | 49.8% |
| Currently Married | 43.9% | 20.1% | 48.0% |
| Married but Separated | 2.1% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| Single Population | 54.0% | 78.1% | 50.2% |
| Never Married | 41.5% | 66.0% | 33.8% |
| Divorced | 8.2% | 8.8% | 10.8% |
| Widowed | 4.3% | 3.2% | 5.6% |
| space5 | | | |
| Household Size | 3.76 | 2.45 | 2.60 |
| Households | 28,803 | 7,081 | 124,010,992 |
| Family Households | 22,840 | 2,696 | 80,755,759 |
| Married couple, w/children | 35.9% | 22.6% | 30.5% |
| Married couple, no children | 28.6% | 39.1% | 42.9% |
| Non Family Households | 5,963 | 4,385 | 43,255,233 |
| Single householder, w/children | 25.3% | 21.0% | 15.8% |
| Single householder, no children | 10.2% | 17.4% | 10.8% |