By Los Angeles Times Staff
Updated Oct. 20, 10:58 p.m. Pacific
884,519
confirmed cases
+4,456 on Tuesday
17,066
deaths
+77 on Tuesday
The COVID-19 pandemic has spread rapidly across California. Experts say the true number of people infected is unknown and likely much higher than official tallies.
To better understand the spread of the virus, The Times is conducting an independent, continual survey of dozens of local health agencies across the state.
What we know
New cases have plateaued. New cases are holding near levels seen in the spring. Over the last seven days, the state averaged 3,224 cases per day, with 2.5% of tests coming back positive.
Death tallies are dropping. The state has averaged 58.4 daily deaths over the last week.
The state is slowly easing the lockdown. The governor’s system now rates 12 counties as too risky to reopen, including Los Angeles County. Other areas have begun to ease restrictions.
Disparities in age and race persist. Roughly 74% of the dead were 65 or older. After adjusting for population, Latinos are now 3.3 times more likely than whites to test positive.
California counties +Other trackers +More coverage +
Totals
Hotspots
Maps
Hospitals
Tests
Demographics
Nursing homes
State rankings
The latest totals
Coronavirus can infect people so rapidly that it has continued to spread despite shutdown orders aimed at slowing the growth of new cases and flattening the line below.
The number of cases in California is now on pace to double every 201.3 days, a number used to measure how quickly the virus is spreading.
CasesDeaths
Cumulative cases
Feb.AprilJuneAug.Oct.0200,000400,000600,000800,000Stay athome orderStay athome orderGovernoreases limitsGovernoreases limits884,519Oct. 20
Times survey of county and local health departments
Local governments announce new cases and deaths each day, though bottlenecks in bureaucracy can introduce delays. For instance, some agencies do not report new totals on holidays and weekends, leading to lower numbers on those days.
Over the past week, the state has averaged 3,224 new cases and 58.4 new deaths per day.
New cases by day
Feb.AprilJuneAug.Oct.02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,0007-dayaverage7-dayaverageData collectionerrors reportedData collectionerrors reported
Deaths by day
Feb.AprilJuneAug.Oct.0501001502007-dayaverage7-dayaverage
The lines above are seven-day averages. They offer a more stable view of the trend than daily totals. The gray range marks when errors in a state computer system delayed the tabulation of new cases.
Where new cases are concentrated
State officials study the latest data and then rate counties to determine when and how businesses reopen. After adjusting for population, the virus is now categorized as widespread in 12 counties, keeping those areas largely locked down. Together they are home to 42% of California residents.
The government doesn't release enough data to replicate its analysis, but the rate of new cases over the last seven days provides some insight into where the virus is spreading.
Metric
CasesDeaths
Method
Per 100kTotals
Counties ranked by new cases per 100,000 residents
1. Tehama
176.7 cases per 100k in last 7 days176.7 cases per 100k in last 7 days7-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
2. Imperial
135.4135.47-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
3. Shasta
105.5105.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
4. San Bernardino
95.695.67-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
5. Monterey
94.694.67-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
6. Sonoma
91.491.47-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
7. Riverside
88.788.77-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
8. Madera
80807-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
9. Tulare
74.174.17-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
10. Solano
67.367.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
11. Fresno
64.364.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
12. Mendocino
64.164.17-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
13. Los Angeles
62.562.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
14. Lake
62.462.47-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
15. Napa
60.560.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
16. San Diego
59.859.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
17. Sacramento
55.855.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
18. San Luis Obispo
55.455.47-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
19. Yuba
54.354.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
20. Kern
52.352.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
21. San Joaquin
50.850.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
22. Inyo
49.849.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
23. Stanislaus
49.549.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
24. Yolo
46.546.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
25. Placer
45.845.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
26. Merced
45457-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
27. Glenn
43437-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
28. Plumas
42.842.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
29. Orange
41.241.27-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
30. Ventura
40407-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
31. Kings
39.339.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
32. Marin
39.239.27-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
33. Santa Cruz
39.139.17-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
34. Trinity
38.938.97-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
35. Contra Costa
38.738.77-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
36. Lassen
38.538.57-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
37. Santa Barbara
37.937.97-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
38. San Mateo
37.637.67-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
39. Sutter
37.637.67-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
40. Santa Clara
37.337.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
41. Alameda
32.132.17-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
42. San Benito
32327-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
43. Butte
30.430.47-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
44. San Francisco
28.328.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
45. Tuolumne
27.827.87-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
46. Nevada
25.225.27-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
47. Colusa
23.323.37-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
48. El Dorado
22227-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
49. Del Norte
18.218.27-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
50. Calaveras
17.717.77-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
51. Humboldt
17.717.77-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
52. Amador
15.915.97-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
53. Mono
14.114.17-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
54. Siskiyou
9.29.27-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
55. Mariposa
5.75.77-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
56. Alpine
007-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
57. Modoc
007-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
58. Sierra
007-day average │7-day average │March 1Oct. 21
Show less
The Times' calculation of per capita rates can vary from what's published elsewhere. To learn more about how and why this count sometimes differs from official figures, consult our FAQ.
What's open where?
See how the governor has rated all 58 counties, and what that means for reopening, in our county reopening tracker.
Mapping the toll
The coronavirus has been found in all 58 counties, from urban Southern California to the state's rural north.
Cumulative totals
Metric
CasesDeaths
Method
Per 100kTotals
Confirmed cases1909901.6k2.2k3.1k5.4k7k
Hover for more information.
Los AngelesLos AngelesSan DiegoSan DiegoSacramentoSacramentoSan FranciscoSan FranciscoReddingReddingFresnoFresno
Cumulative totals
County
Cases
Per 100k
Tuesday
Deaths
Per 100k
Tuesday
Imperial »
12,534
6,955
+59
335
185.9
–
Kings »
8,155
5,433.9
+2
83
55.3
–
Kern »
33,551
3,799.4
+54
413
46.8
+3
Tulare »
17,317
3,760.7
+111
279
60.6
+3
Merced »
9,386
3,488.2
+11
153
56.9
+1
Stanislaus »
17,354
3,217.9
+13
393
72.9
+1
Madera »
4,920
3,173.9
+34
73
47.1
–
Fresno »
30,152
3,082.6
+101
430
44
+1
San Joaquin »
21,436
2,927.6
+240
484
66.1
–
Los Angeles »
290,107
2,872.9
+686
6,912
68.4
+35
Show all
Residents of cities, neighborhoods and regions all across the state have contracted the coronavirus. Here are the latest tallies for 1,107 places as released by county health departments.
Confirmed cases
100
1,000
10,000
Counties that do not report cases by locality
© Mapbox © OpenStreetMap Improve this map
The following counties currently do not report cases by locality: Alpine, Colusa, Glenn, Lassen, Mariposa, Modoc, San Benito, Sierra, Tehama and Tuolumne
Filter by countyAlameda
Amador
Butte
Calaveras
Contra Costa
Del Norte
El Dorado
Fresno
Humboldt
Imperial
Inyo
Kern
Kings
Lake
Los Angeles
Madera
Marin
Mendocino
Merced
Mono
Monterey
Napa
Nevada
Orange
Placer
Plumas
Riverside
Sacramento
San Bernardino
San Diego
San Francisco
San Joaquin
San Luis Obispo
San Mateo
Santa Barbara
Santa Clara
Santa Cruz
Shasta
Siskiyou
Solano
Sonoma
Stanislaus
Sutter
Trinity
Tulare
Ventura
Yolo
Yuba
Search by name
Area
Confirmed cases
East Los Angeles
6,797
Pomona
5,908
South Gate
4,793
Palmdale
4,688
El Monte
4,686
Boyle Heights
4,569
Downey
4,428
North Hollywood
4,373
Compton
4,310
Glendale
4,229
Show all
Hospitals and patients
Lockdown measures aim to slow the virus in hope of preventing hospitals from being overrun. To keep tabs on capacity, officials watch out for rapid increases in the number of patients.
There are now 2,291 hospital patients statewide with a confirmed case, a change of -2% from two weeks ago.
ConfirmedSuspectedBoth
Intensive care and other hospitalized patients
AprilJuneAug.Oct.02,0004,0006,0008,000
California Department of Public Health
Confirmed patients
County
ICU
Other
Total
Los Angeles »
216
542
758
San Diego »
72
119
191
San Bernardino »
40
147
187
Orange »
63
105
168
Riverside »
42
115
157
Fresno »
23
77
100
Santa Clara »
26
65
91
Sacramento »
23
57
80
Stanislaus »
14
45
59
Kern »
18
38
56
Alameda »
20
33
53
Imperial »
15
26
41
Ventura »
15
15
30
Tulare »
1
27
28
Contra Costa »
5
20
25
San Francisco »
8
17
25
San Joaquin »
4
19
23
San Mateo »
7
16
23
Monterey »
7
15
22
Solano »
4
18
22
Kings »
1
19
20
Sonoma »
4
16
20
Placer »
3
16
19
Santa Barbara »
4
14
18
Yuba »
1
9
10
Santa Cruz »
5
4
9
Madera »
1
7
8
Shasta »
1
7
8
Merced »
3
3
6
Yolo »
3
3
6
Tehama »
2
4
6
Marin »
1
4
5
Napa »
0
3
3
Humboldt »
1
2
3
San Luis Obispo »
0
2
2
Butte »
2
0
2
Lake »
1
1
2
Mendocino »
1
0
1
Inyo »
0
1
1
Del Norte »
0
1
1
Nevada »
0
1
1
Tuolumne »
0
1
1
Colusa »
0
0
0
Lassen »
0
0
0
San Benito »
0
0
0
Glenn »
0
0
0
Sutter »
0
0
0
Mono »
0
0
0
Calaveras »
0
0
0
Amador »
0
0
0
El Dorado »
0
0
0
Mariposa »
0
0
0
Siskiyou »
0
0
0
Plumas »
0
0
0
Modoc »
0
0
0
Trinity »
0
0
0
Show less
Officials also closely monitor the number of beds open in intensive-care units. In late July, the state changed its tracking method to exclude beds that are only for infants from the count.
Available ICU beds
AprilJuneAug.Oct.01,0002,0003,0004,0005,000State changestracking methodState changestracking method3,079Oct. 19
California Department of Public Health
Testing
After a fitful start, California has increased coronavirus testing in the state. Over the last week, an average of 122,193 tests have been conducted each day.
New tests by day
MayJuneJulyAug.Sept.Oct.050,000100,000150,000200,0007-dayaverage7-dayaverage
California Department of Public Health
In the last seven days, about 2.5% of the 855,353 tests conducted have returned a positive result.
Positive test rate, seven-day average
MayJuneJulyAug.Sept.Oct.0%2%4%6%8%10%2.5%Oct. 20
California Department of Public Health
Wide disparities in age and race
While younger adults make up the majority of positive tests, deaths due to the virus have skewed heavily toward the elderly.
Percentage of cases vs. population
0%10%20%30%40%50%80+75-7970-7465-6960-6450-5935-4918-345-170-4
Percentage of deaths vs. population
0%10%20%30%40%50%80+75-7970-7465-6960-6450-5935-4918-345-170-4
There are 860 cases with an unreported age.
California Department of Public Health
The state has logged the race of the patient in nearly two-thirds of cases.
Latinos and Black people have contracted the virus at a higher rate than white and Asian people. After adjusting for population, Latinos are now 3.3 times more likely to test positive than white people.
Cumulative cases by race per 100,000 people
JuneJulyAug.Sept.Oct.05001,0001,5002,0002,500AsianAsianBlackBlackLatino2,438 casesper 100,000Latino2,438 casesper 100,000OtherOtherWhiteWhite
The other category includes Native Americans and people of two or more races. California Department of Public Health
One outcome is that among most age groups, and especially younger people, Black people and Latinos are dying more often than other races relative to their share of the population.
Percentage of deaths vs. population
Age: All
18+
0-17
18-34
35-49
50-64
65-79
80+
CasesDeaths
0%20%40%60%80%BlackAsianWhiteLatino
Race
Deaths
Deaths Pct.
Population Pct.
Latino
8,142
48.6%
36.3%
White
5,035
30.1%
38.8%
Asian
2,043
12.2%
16.5%
Black
1,260
7.5%
6.1%
Note: There are 156 deaths with an unknown race in this age bracket, 1% of the total.
Lives lost to COVID-19
Learn more about those we've lost by reading Times obituaries of Californians who have died from coronavirus.
Nursing homes
Nursing homes are a tragic focal point of the outbreak. Residents and staff have accounted for 7% the state's coronavirus cases, but 35% of its deaths.
CasesDeaths
Deaths at nursing homes vs. elsewhere
JuneJulyAug.Sept.Oct.02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,000
California Department of Public Health
Track outbreaks in California nursing homes
Follow the data and look up the latest tallies at the hundreds of skilled-nursing and assisted-living facilities across the state.
California in context
To date, the United States has recorded 8,268,606 coronavirus cases and 220,971 deaths. In the last week, the country has averaged 59,455 new cases and 737 deaths per day.
While California — America’s most populous state — leads the nation in cases, it ranks much lower after adjusting for population. Home to 12% of the country's population, thus far it has accounted for roughly 11% of cases.
New cases in California vs. the rest of the country
MarchMayJulySept.020,00040,00060,00080,000
Johns Hopkins University CSSE, Times survey
State
Cases
Per 100k
New cases
FewerMore
California
884,519
2,259.4
Mar 1Oct 20
Texas
862,277
3,092.2
Florida
760,389
3,691.5
New York
486,480
2,479.7
Illinois
354,457
2,764.6
Georgia
342,438
3,325.5
North Carolina
248,750
2,449.4
Tennessee
233,569
3,511.7
Arizona
232,937
3,353.2
New Jersey
222,193
2,501.7
Pennsylvania
189,970
1,485.2
Ohio
185,639
1,594.6
Wisconsin
178,482
3,088.8
Louisiana
176,681
3,788.5
Alabama
174,528
3,587.7
Virginia
167,270
1,988
Michigan
165,994
1,667
South Carolina
165,493
3,339.3
Missouri
161,849
2,657.6
Indiana
150,664
2,269.9
Massachusetts
145,464
2,129.7
Maryland
136,744
2,277.8
Minnesota
125,531
2,271.1
Mississippi
111,322
3,724.7
Oklahoma
109,548
2,795.9
Iowa
109,202
3,486.1
Arkansas
100,441
3,358.5
Washington
99,150
1,359.3
Utah
96,643
3,173.5
Nevada
91,499
3,130.5
Kentucky
89,544
2,016.7
Colorado
87,559
1,583
Kansas
72,179
2,481.4
Connecticut
64,455
1,799.7
Nebraska
59,409
3,119
Puerto Rico
58,643
1,731.4
Idaho
54,663
3,238.7
Oregon
40,136
983.3
New Mexico
37,896
1,811.1
South Dakota
34,457
3,986.7
North Dakota
33,666
4,475.7
Rhode Island
28,649
2,711.4
Montana
24,093
2,312.8
Delaware
23,325
2,456.6
West Virginia
20,520
1,121.9
District of Columbia
16,445
2,402.5
Hawaii
14,156
995.5
Alaska
11,391
1,542.4
New Hampshire
9,828
731.5
Wyoming
9,526
1,637.2
Maine
5,987
449.2
Vermont
1,956
313
Show less
The same is true for deaths. So far, California has accounted for 8% of deaths nationwide. It still trails far behind New York, where deaths surged in the early days of the pandemic.
New deaths in California vs. the rest of the country
MarchMayJulySept.05001,0001,5002,0002,500
Johns Hopkins University CSSE, Times survey
State
Deaths
Per 100k
New deaths
FewerMore
New York
33,366
170.1
Mar 1Oct 20
Texas
17,558
63
California
17,066
43.6
New Jersey
16,227
182.7
Florida
16,105
78.2
Massachusetts
9,758
142.9
Illinois
9,537
74.4
Pennsylvania
8,516
66.6
Georgia
7,674
74.5
Michigan
7,383
74.1
Arizona
5,837
84
Louisiana
5,772
123.8
Ohio
5,083
43.7
Connecticut
4,559
127.3
Maryland
4,050
67.5
Indiana
4,008
60.4
North Carolina
3,992
39.3
South Carolina
3,696
74.6
Virginia
3,482
41.4
Mississippi
3,202
107.1
Tennessee
2,952
44.4
Alabama
2,805
57.7
Missouri
2,625
43.1
Minnesota
2,299
41.6
Washington
2,282
31.3
Colorado
2,182
39.4
Arkansas
1,728
57.8
Nevada
1,727
59.1
Wisconsin
1,633
28.3
Iowa
1,576
50.3
Kentucky
1,342
30.2
Oklahoma
1,191
30.4
Rhode Island
1,164
110.2
New Mexico
942
45
Kansas
895
30.8
Puerto Rico
769
22.7
Delaware
668
70.4
District of Columbia
642
93.8
Oregon
633
15.5
Nebraska
565
29.7
Utah
551
18.1
Idaho
535
31.7
New Hampshire
468
34.8
North Dakota
412
54.8
West Virginia
411
22.5
South Dakota
330
38.2
Montana
252
24.2
Hawaii
189
13.3
Maine
146
11
Alaska
67
9.1
Wyoming
61
10.5
Vermont
58
9.3
Show less
Tracking the coronavirus
California counties
Alameda
Alpine
Amador
Butte
Calaveras
Colusa
Contra Costa
Del Norte
El Dorado
Fresno
Glenn
Humboldt
Imperial
Inyo
Kern
Kings
Lake
Lassen
Los Angeles
Madera
Marin
Mariposa
Mendocino
Merced
Modoc
Mono
Monterey
Napa
Nevada
Orange
Placer
Plumas
Riverside
Sacramento
San Benito
San Bernardino
San Diego
San Francisco
San Joaquin
San Luis Obispo
San Mateo
Santa Barbara
Santa Clara
Santa Cruz
Shasta
Sierra
Siskiyou
Solano
Sonoma
Stanislaus
Sutter
Tehama
Trinity
Tulare
Tuolumne
Ventura
Yolo
Yuba
Other trackers
Housing homeless people
Nursing homes
State prisons
Following the curve
Unemployment and economic fallout
Which counties are open
Which beaches are closed
Lives lost
Frequently asked questions
More coverage
Coronavirus symptoms
How coronavirus spreads
Get our newsletter
About the numbers
This page was created by Swetha Kannan, Casey Miller, Sean Greene, Lorena Iñiguez Elebee, Rong-Gong Lin II, Ryan Murphy, Melody Gutierrez, Priya Krishnakumar, Sandhya Kambhampati, Maloy Moore, Jennifer Lu, Aida Ylanan, Vanessa Martínez, Ryan Menezes, Thomas Suh Lauder, Andrea Roberson, Ben Poston, Nicole Santa Cruz, Iris Lee, Rahul Mukherjee, Jaclyn Cosgrove, Anthony Pesce, Paul Duginski and Phi Do.
State and county totals come from an ongoing Times survey of California's 58 county health agencies as well as the three run by cities. Those figures are ahead of the totals periodically released by the state's Department of Public Health. State officials acknowledge that their tallies lag behind the updates posted by local agencies throughout the day and do not dispute The Times' method.
Data on hospitalizations, tests, demographics and reopening plans come from California's Department of Public Health.
Nursing home totals include skilled-nursing facilities tracked by the state public health department, as well as assisted-living facilities monitored by the California Department of Social Services.
Data from other states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico are collected by researchers at the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
The Times database is available to the public on Github, a popular website for hosting data and computer code. The files will be updated daily at github.com/datadesk/california-coronavirus-data.
The data collection effort is done in partnership with journalists at the San Francisco Chronicle, the San Diego Union-Tribune, KQED, KPCC, CapRadio, Calmatters and Stanford's Big Local News.
Learn more about The Times count by reading this list of frequently asked questions or by reading this interview with members of our team.
If you see information here that you believe is incorrect or out of date, please contact Data and Graphics Editor Ben Welsh at
[email protected].
Change log
Oct. 19 Maps were added for case counts in Del Norte, Lake, Siskiyou, Trinity counties.
Oct. 17 The hotspots section now offers a ranking of counties by the total number of cases and deaths in the past week.
Oct. 9 Charts plotting the daily trend in cities and regions added to most county pages.
Oct. 4 Charts plotting how each area stacks up against the state’s reopening benchmarks added to county pages.
Oct. 1 City-level totals added for Shasta County.
Sept. 27 Totals for skilled-nursing facilities are now drawn from the state's open data portal, which is promoted as the most comprehensive and up-to-date source.
Sept. 26 The hotspots section now offers a ranking of counties by deaths per 100,000 residents over the last seven days.
Sept. 22 Nursing home lists moved to a new page focused on skilled-nursing and assisted-living facilities.
Sept. 13 The logarithmic curves plotting the rate of growth in each state were replaced. Instead, stacked-bar charts compare California's case and death counts against the rest of the nation.
Sept. 12 The county map is now exclusively focused on cumulative totals and starts off by displaying grand totals per 100,000 residents.
Sept. 11 The logarithmic curves plotting the rate of growth in each county were replaced. Instead, after adjusting for population, counties are now ranked by the number new cases announced in the past week. The reopening map has been removed and can be found by visiting our more complete county reopening tracker.
https://www.latimes.com/projects/california-coronavirus-cases-tracking-outbreak/