Southern California

Sunset in Venice, a neighborhood in Los Angeles

California counties below the 36th standard parallel

Percent of households with incomes above $150k across LA County census tracts.

Köppen climate types of southern California

Satellite view of southern California, including the Channel Islands

Peaks in the eastern San Gabriel Mountains, Angeles National Forest, San Bernardino County.

Yucca Valley with Visitor Center in Background in June 2017.

The Oceanside Pier on the San Diego County coast

Interstate and state highway system of Southern California

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway's combined Super Chief-El Capitan pulls into Los Angeles's Union Passenger Terminal on September 24, 1966.

Geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California.

- Southern California

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Inland Empire

Yucca Valley, within the Morongo Basin, is halfway between the San Bernardino Valley and the Arizona state line.

A map of the United States, highlighting the twin counties of the Inland Empire

Arlington Heights Citrus Groves, Riverside circa 1903

View of the San Bernardino Valley from the San Bernardino Mountains. The Santa Ana Mountains are visible in the distance.

This map, created by the Regional Plan Association, illustrates the Southern California megaregion.

Regional Plan Association map of the USA showing the eleven emerging megaregions

Housing construction in Fontana, looking northeast along Interstate 15. Since 1980, the city's population has grown by 170,000.

I-10–I-215 Interchange traffic, south of downtown San Bernardino

sbX Green Line's Civic Center Station in downtown San Bernardino

sbX Hospitality West Station, downtown San Bernardino

The Redlands California Temple is one of four LDS temples in Southern California.

California State University, San Bernardino

Lamb of God playing at Ozzfest at the San Manuel Amphitheater in Devore, San Bernardino, 2007

At 330 ft high, the Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa tower is the tallest building in the Inland Empire. Concerts and events are booked inside.

California Theatre in downtown San Bernardino

Inland Empire 66ers playing at San Manuel Stadium in downtown San Bernardino

The Inland Empire (IE) is a metropolitan area and region in Southern California, inland of and adjacent to coastal California, centering around the cities of San Bernardino and Riverside, and borders Los Angeles County to the west.

Coachella Valley

Arid regions of the Western United States as mapped in 1893

The Coachella Valley is an arid rift valley in the Colorado Desert of Southern California's Riverside County.

Greater Los Angeles

Many areas are completely filled with houses, buildings, roads, and freeways as observed in Vermont Vista, a Los Angeles neighborhood.

Aerial view of Newport Beach in Orange County

Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Park

Laguna Beach coastline is popular for sunbathers

Warner Brothers Studios in the San Fernando Valley

Cal State LA's The Golden Eagle, consisting of two adjoining structures separated by a promenade.

Rush hour on the Harbor Freeway, Downtown

UCLA–USC rivalry, both universities are located in Los Angeles and are members of the Pac-12 Conference. The rivalry between the two is among the more unusual in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I sports, because the campuses are only 12 miles (19 km) apart, and both are located within the same megacity.

Greater Los Angeles is the second-largest metropolitan region in the United States with a population of 18.5 million as of 2021, encompassing five counties in southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the east, with Los Angeles County in the center and Orange County to the southeast.

Los Angeles

Major city in the U.S. state of California.

Felipe de Neve led the Los Angeles Pobladores in founding the city in 1781.

Hill Street, looking north from 6th Street, c. 1913. Notable sites include Central Park (today's Pershing Square) (the trees, lower left), Hotel Portsmouth (lower right), and the Hill Street tunnel (at end of street).

General George Patton during a welcome-home parade in Los Angeles, June 9, 1945

Satellite photo showing the city of Los Angeles

Nighttime photograph of South Bay (Los Angeles County), 2017, with the Pacific Ocean to the left (dark region), Palos Verdes next to the right (few lights), San Pedro in the center foreground, and Terminal Island in the right foreground (bright region)

Oldest palm tree in Los Angeles, 2019, with the Los Angeles Coliseum in the background

A view of Downtown Los Angeles in the background and the Hollywood district with the circular Capitol Records Building in the foreground

A clear evening view of Mount Lee and the Hollywood Sign from the Griffith Observatory lawn

The city is often covered in smog, December 2005.

Percentage of households with incomes above $150k across LA County census tracts

Map of racial and ethnic distribution in Los Angeles, 2010 U.S. Census. Each dot is 25 people:

The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels is the mother cathedral for the Los Angeles archdiocese.

The LAPD on May Day 2006 in front of the new Caltrans District 7 Headquarters

Employment by industry in Los Angeles County (2015)

Kaiser Sunset Hospital in Los Angeles. Kaiser Permanente was the largest non-government employer in Los Angeles County in 2018.

The Dolby Theatre, venue for the Academy Awards

Crypto.com Arena is a sports arena, home to the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Kings and Los Angeles Sparks.

The Tom Bradley Room, making up the whole interior of L.A. City Hall's 27th floor

Los Angeles branch of the California State Normal School on Vermont Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, between 1882 and 1914. The site is now occupied by the Los Angeles Central Library.

California State University, Los Angeles

The Los Angeles Central Library is in Downtown Los Angeles.

Former Los Angeles Times headquarters in the Civic Center

The Fox Plaza in Century City, headquarters for 20th Century Fox

The Judge Harry Pregerson Interchange, connecting the Century Freeway (I-105) and the Harbor Freeway (I-110)

Los Angeles Metro Rail and Metro Transitway map

The Vincent Thomas Bridge is at Terminal Island.

A sign near City Hall points to the sister cities of Los Angeles.

The city of Los Angeles lies in a basin in Southern California.

Imperial County, California

County in the U.S. state of California.

Juan Bautista de Anza's famous expedition passed through the area in 1775.

Bighorn sheep at Palm Canyon in Anza-Borrego State Park

As of the 2010 census, the population was 174,528, making it the least populous county in Southern California.

Orange County, California

Laguna Beach (with Newport beach in background).

Los Angeles County before the secession of Orange County in 1889

A billboard for Nixon's Restaurant in Orange County, circa 1955

One of the few remaining farms near the ocean, 1975. Photo by Charles O'Rear.

Three Arch Bay in Laguna Beach, Southern Orange County

View of Newport Center and the Santa Ana Mountains from Newport Harbor

Aerial view of an edge city: Irvine Business Complex (top), John Wayne Airport runway (upper center), South Coast Metro buildings (lower center) and below, the South Coast Plaza mall

Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley from over Costa Mesa

Major facilities in the Anaheim–Santa Ana edge city, plus the locations of the adjacent downtowns

Orange County Density Map. Darker shades indicate more densely populated areas.

The developing urban core in the City of Irvine.

State Route 1 winds down the coast over Corona Del Mar State Beach

Anaheim Regional Transportation Intermodal Center (ARTIC)

Santa Ana Regional Transportation Center

1965 aerial photo of Anaheim Disneyland, Disneyland Hotel with its Monorail Station. The Disneyland Heliport, surrounding orange groves, Santa Ana Freeway (now I-5) and the Melodyland Theater "in the round," and part of the City of Anaheim. Anaheim Stadium can be seen under construction near the upper left.

Street banners promoting the county's two major league teams, the Ducks and the Angels.

Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California.

Huntington Beach, California

Huntington Beach was originally part of Rancho Las Bolsas. In 1872, Californio ranchero Ramón Yorba (pictured) was patented for half of the rancho, along with Juan José Murillo.

San Pedro Bay Outer Continental Shelf Operations Map with oil platforms as of 2012- Edith, Elly, Ellen, Eureka (federal leases) and Ester, Emmy, Eva (state leases)

Surfers abound near Huntington City Pier.

A wooden fence along the Bolsa Chica bike path

The Bolsa Chica Wetlands near the Brightwater housing development

HBFD Engine 45 on Main Street in Huntington Beach.

Huntington Beach Police Department MD520N helicopter

Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County in Southern California, located 35 mi southeast of Downtown Los Angeles.

Riverside County, California

Yucca pines near Ryan Mountain Trail in Joshua Tree National Park

The 161-foot, 48-bell, carillon tower at the University of California, Riverside.

Riverside County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California.

San Bernardino County, California

Don Antonio María Lugo was granted the right to settle the San Bernardino Valley in 1839 by Governor Juan Bautista Alvarado.

San Bernardino County horticulture exhibit at World Columbian Exposition, Chicago 1893.

SBC Sheriff's department operates a sizable fleet of helicopters. Shown here are a Bell 212 (foreground) and a Sikorsky S-61 at the air unit's Rialto Airport headquarters.

San Bernardino County, officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area.

Santa Barbara County, California

Mission Santa Barbara from Mission Park, Santa Barbara

South Coast of Santa Barbara County, view looking northeast, showing, from left to right, Isla Vista, Goleta, Hope Ranch, Santa Barbara. All the mountains except for the most distant in the right rear are in Santa Barbara County.

Coast of Santa Barbara and rugged back country. Courtesy: NASA Earth Explorer.

Transition zone (back dunes) in Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge

Santa Barbara County, California, officially the County of Santa Barbara, is located in Southern California.