By region · United States
Homelessness in California
Approximately 181,400 people experiencing homelessness on a single night in California, per the 2023 HUD Point-in-Time count (rounded).
53
Resources on HomelessHelp
18
Cities covered
181,400
2023 PIT count
Rank #1
US PIT rank
State context
California has roughly 28% of the US homeless population in ~12% of the US population. Major state programs include the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) grant, the Behavioral Health Bridge Housing program, and Project Homekey (hotel/motel conversions). LA, SF, Oakland, San Diego, San Jose, and Sacramento all run their own Continuum of Care systems.
Where to find help
- Call 211 from any phone in California for live shelter referrals. Operators know which beds are available tonight.
- Call 988 if you are in mental-health crisis (US and Canada).
- Use our find-help finder to see resources closest to your location.
- HUD Continuum of Care list for California: view on HUD Exchange ↗. These are the local agencies that coordinate housing programs.
Resources in California
Cities in California on HomelessHelp
- Los Angeles · 18 resources
- San Francisco · 12 resources
- Oakland · 4 resources
- Sacramento · 3 resources
- Berkeley · 2 resources
- San Jose · 2 resources
- Anaheim · 1 resources
- Bakersfield · 1 resources
- Bell · 1 resources
- Fresno · 1 resources
- Long Beach · 1 resources
- Riverside · 1 resources
- Salinas · 1 resources
- San Diego · 1 resources
- Santa Ana · 1 resources
- Santa Barbara · 1 resources
- Santa Rosa · 1 resources
- Stockton · 1 resources
Related
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Citing primary sources is generally preferred to citing us. Where this article references specific studies (e.g. At Home/Chez Soi, HUD AHAR, point-in-time counts), use those sources directly in your bibliography when possible. Our Research hub links to the primary documents.