Race, Diversity, and Ethnicity in Bakersfield, CA

The map below shows majority race by area in the Bakersfield area, as self-identified on the US census. Darker shades indicate a larger racial majority in that neighborhood. This page also contains data and maps on Bakersfield racial diversity and diversity scores. Click here to scroll to diversity data.

Bakersfield, CA map of race and ethnicity
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White
Hispanic
Black
Asian
Multiple/Other
WhiteHispanicBlackAsianMultiple/Other
Majority race by area

The majority race in Bakersfield overall is hispanic, making up 55.1% of residents. The next most-common racial group is white at 29.9%. There are more hispanic people in the central areas of the city. People who identify as white are most likely to be living in the northeast places. The data below shows how many people identify themselves as each of the following races, which most Americans base on their family's national origin:

Race in Bakersfield

 
Self-Identified Race
Bakersfield, CA Population
White
29.9%
Hispanic
55.1%
Black
4.9%
Asian
6.1%
Native American
0.3%
Other
3.7%
   

Diversity and Diversity Scores for Bakersfield, CA

The map below shows diversity in Bakersfield. Areas in green are more diverse, while areas in red are much less diverse. Diversity, in this case, means a mixture of people with different race and ethnicity living close to one another. For example, all-black and all-white areas in the city would both be considered lacking diversity.

Bakersfield, CA map of race and ethnicity
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Colorblind friendly off

Bakersfield Diversity Score

59.9

More diverse than 94% of US cities

Bakersfield has a diversity score of 59.9: the chance, in percent, that two residents picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups, from ACS race counts. A place where everyone shares one group scores 0, and an even mix of the six groups in the chart above scores the maximum, 83.3. Bakersfield is much more diverse than other US cities, more diverse than 94% of them. Within the Bakersfield area's proper boundaries, the most diverse area is southeast Bakersfield, and the least diverse areas are in central Bakersfield.

Source: BestNeighborhood calculations from the U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 2020-2024 5-year estimates (race and Hispanic origin); proprietary data mapping and analysis. Special thanks to the University of Virginia.