Saturation ranking
Where swimming pool cleaning & maintenance is most and least saturated in California
Every California market with sourced Pool Service data, ranked on how much provision it already has. Counties are measured per 10,000 residents. Cities are measured as a share of the businesses in the same ZIP codes, because a city’s establishment counts cover its ZIP codes rather than its city limits and cannot be divided by its municipal population. Neither measure says anything about revenue or profitability, and a crowded market is not automatically a bad one: it is also where the most businesses come up for sale.
- Statewide establishments
- 2,198
- 2023 County Business Patterns
- State median density
- 0.5
- Per 10,000 residents, counties
- Counties ranked
- 39
- of 43 with data
- Cities ranked
- 96
- of 172 with data
Most saturated counties for pool service
39 of 43 counties with sourced data qualify for this ranking. Markets with fewer than 5 establishments are excluded at both levels, because a single opening or closing would move them enough to dominate the list. Counties under 2,000 residents are also excluded, where a per-capita figure is arithmetically true and analytically useless.
| # | County | Establishments | Per 10k | Vs state median | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nevada County101,911 residents | 22 | 2.2 | +303% | Densely served |
| 2 | El Dorado County192,323 residents | 23 | 1.2 | +123% | Densely served |
| 3 | Placer County442,081 residents | 52 | 1.2 | +119% | Densely served |
| 4 | Sonoma County486,444 residents | 57 | 1.2 | +119% | Densely served |
| 5 | Ventura County830,851 residents | 79 | 1.0 | +77% | Densely served |
| 6 | San Diego County3,282,248 residents | 274 | 0.8 | +56% | Densely served |
| 7 | Sutter County98,787 residents | 8 | 0.8 | +51% | Densely served |
| 8 | Riverside County2,544,916 residents | 206 | 0.8 | +51% | Densely served |
| 9 | Santa Barbara County442,065 residents | 34 | 0.8 | +44% | Above average |
| 10 | Lake County67,772 residents | 5 | 0.7 | +38% | Above average |
| 11 | Shasta County181,648 residents | 13 | 0.7 | +34% | Above average |
| 12 | Marin County253,694 residents | 18 | 0.7 | +32% | Above average |
| 13 | Contra Costa County1,170,070 residents | 80 | 0.7 | +28% | Above average |
| 14 | Mendocino County88,122 residents | 6 | 0.7 | +27% | Above average |
| 15 | Sacramento County1,618,460 residents | 107 | 0.7 | +23% | Above average |
State median for this industry: 0.5 establishments per 10,000 residents. A high figure means more provision per resident, not more demand.
Least saturated counties for pool service
The same 39 counties, read from the bottom of the ordering upward. Thin provision is worth checking against the neighbouring counties before treating it as an opening.
| # | County | Establishments | Per 10k | Vs state median | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco County826,079 residents | 8 | 0.1 | -82% | Thinly served |
| 2 | Alameda County1,636,630 residents | 38 | 0.2 | -57% | Thinly served |
| 3 | Imperial County181,411 residents | 5 | 0.3 | -49% | Thinly served |
| 4 | San Mateo County743,568 residents | 25 | 0.3 | -37% | Below average |
| 5 | Kern County927,068 residents | 33 | 0.4 | -34% | Below average |
| 6 | Humboldt County131,647 residents | 5 | 0.4 | -29% | Below average |
| 7 | Los Angeles County9,694,934 residents | 379 | 0.4 | -27% | Below average |
| 8 | Yolo County224,410 residents | 10 | 0.4 | -17% | Below average |
| 9 | San Bernardino County2,224,091 residents | 100 | 0.4 | -16% | Below average |
| 10 | Napa County132,949 residents | 6 | 0.5 | -16% | Below average |
| 11 | Kings County154,327 residents | 7 | 0.5 | -15% | Below average |
| 12 | Solano County455,376 residents | 21 | 0.5 | -14% | Typical |
| 13 | Merced County297,260 residents | 14 | 0.5 | -12% | Typical |
| 14 | Stanislaus County557,719 residents | 27 | 0.5 | -10% | Typical |
| 15 | Santa Clara County1,914,391 residents | 98 | 0.5 | -4% | Typical |
State median for this industry: 0.5 establishments per 10,000 residents. A low figure can mean a genuine gap, or a market served from the next county over.
Most saturated cities for pool service
96 of 172 cities with sourced data qualify for this ranking. Markets with fewer than 5 establishments are excluded at both levels, because a single opening or closing would move them enough to dominate the list. Cities with fewer than 500 businesses in total are also excluded, because on a base that small the industry’s share moves on rounding.
| # | City | Establishments | Share of local | Vs state share | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IndioRiverside, 1,728 businesses in total | 26 | 1.50% | +912% | Densely served |
| 2 | YucaipaSan Bernardino, 891 businesses in total | 12 | 1.35% | +806% | Densely served |
| 3 | Cathedral CityRiverside, 914 businesses in total | 11 | 1.20% | +709% | Densely served |
| 4 | La QuintaRiverside, 951 businesses in total | 9 | 0.95% | +536% | Densely served |
| 5 | SanteeSan Diego, 1,273 businesses in total | 12 | 0.94% | +534% | Densely served |
| 6 | Yucca ValleySan Bernardino, 550 businesses in total | 5 | 0.91% | +511% | Densely served |
| 7 | Rohnert ParkSonoma, 912 businesses in total | 8 | 0.88% | +490% | Densely served |
| 8 | MurrietaRiverside, 3,203 businesses in total | 28 | 0.87% | +488% | Densely served |
| 9 | HighlandSan Bernardino, 581 businesses in total | 5 | 0.86% | +479% | Densely served |
| 10 | OakdaleStanislaus, 702 businesses in total | 6 | 0.85% | +475% | Densely served |
| 11 | NorcoRiverside, 840 businesses in total | 7 | 0.83% | +460% | Densely served |
| 12 | TruckeeNevada, 1,148 businesses in total | 9 | 0.78% | +427% | Densely served |
| 13 | BrentwoodContra Costa, 1,414 businesses in total | 11 | 0.78% | +423% | Densely served |
| 14 | Citrus HeightsSacramento, 1,423 businesses in total | 10 | 0.70% | +373% | Densely served |
| 15 | Rancho Santa MargaritaOrange, 1,156 businesses in total | 8 | 0.69% | +365% | Densely served |
| 16 | SonomaSonoma, 1,218 businesses in total | 8 | 0.66% | +342% | Densely served |
| 17 | NovatoMarin, 1,888 businesses in total | 12 | 0.64% | +327% | Densely served |
| 18 | MartinezContra Costa, 1,141 businesses in total | 7 | 0.61% | +313% | Densely served |
| 19 | ClovisFresno, 2,785 businesses in total | 17 | 0.61% | +311% | Densely served |
| 20 | Simi ValleyVentura, 3,329 businesses in total | 19 | 0.57% | +284% | Densely served |
| 21 | Lake ElsinoreRiverside, 1,327 businesses in total | 7 | 0.53% | +255% | Densely served |
| 22 | PalmdaleLos Angeles, 2,335 businesses in total | 12 | 0.51% | +246% | Densely served |
| 23 | Grass ValleyNevada, 1,381 businesses in total | 7 | 0.51% | +241% | Densely served |
| 24 | Thousand OaksVentura, 3,759 businesses in total | 19 | 0.51% | +240% | Densely served |
| 25 | San Juan CapistranoOrange, 1,409 businesses in total | 7 | 0.50% | +234% | Densely served |
Statewide, 0.15% of California businesses are in this industry. A higher local share means the industry takes up more of the local business base than it does statewide.
City figures are aggregated over the ZIP codes the Postal Service assigns to each place, which do not follow municipal boundaries. That is why the comparison here is a share of the businesses in those same ZIP codes rather than a figure per resident: both sides then cover the same ground, so a city that loses establishments to a separately named ZIP loses its denominator with them.
Most underserved cities for pool service
The bottom of the same ordering. These are the California cities carrying the least pool service provision per resident among those that clear both floors.
| # | City | Establishments | Share of local | Vs state share | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los AngelesLos Angeles, 77,828 businesses in total | 10 | 0.01% | -91% | Thinly served |
| 2 | TorranceLos Angeles, 7,600 businesses in total | 6 | 0.08% | -47% | Thinly served |
| 3 | SacramentoSacramento, 19,687 businesses in total | 17 | 0.09% | -42% | Thinly served |
| 4 | StocktonSan Joaquin, 6,022 businesses in total | 6 | 0.10% | -33% | Below average |
| 5 | San DiegoSan Diego, 42,106 businesses in total | 46 | 0.11% | -27% | Below average |
| 6 | Walnut CreekContra Costa, 4,012 businesses in total | 6 | 0.15% | +1% | Typical |
| 7 | HaywardAlameda, 4,289 businesses in total | 7 | 0.16% | +10% | Typical |
| 8 | Mountain ViewSanta Clara, 2,974 businesses in total | 5 | 0.17% | +13% | Typical |
| 9 | San JoseSanta Clara, 21,501 businesses in total | 37 | 0.17% | +16% | Above average |
| 10 | Santa MariaSanta Barbara, 2,804 businesses in total | 5 | 0.18% | +20% | Above average |
| 11 | CoronaRiverside, 5,711 businesses in total | 11 | 0.19% | +30% | Above average |
| 12 | Santa AnaOrange, 8,181 businesses in total | 16 | 0.20% | +32% | Above average |
| 13 | ConcordContra Costa, 3,539 businesses in total | 7 | 0.20% | +33% | Above average |
| 14 | ReddingShasta, 3,471 businesses in total | 7 | 0.20% | +36% | Above average |
| 15 | BakersfieldKern, 10,791 businesses in total | 22 | 0.20% | +37% | Above average |
| 16 | Chula VistaSan Diego, 4,885 businesses in total | 10 | 0.20% | +38% | Above average |
| 17 | OrangeOrange, 5,761 businesses in total | 12 | 0.21% | +40% | Above average |
| 18 | TemeculaRiverside, 4,281 businesses in total | 9 | 0.21% | +41% | Above average |
| 19 | Santa RosaSonoma, 6,121 businesses in total | 13 | 0.21% | +43% | Above average |
| 20 | OxnardVentura, 3,760 businesses in total | 8 | 0.21% | +43% | Above average |
| 21 | FresnoFresno, 13,153 businesses in total | 29 | 0.22% | +48% | Above average |
| 22 | ChicoButte, 3,159 businesses in total | 7 | 0.22% | +49% | Above average |
| 23 | Costa MesaOrange, 5,397 businesses in total | 12 | 0.22% | +50% | Above average |
| 24 | Lake ForestOrange, 2,230 businesses in total | 5 | 0.22% | +51% | Densely served |
| 25 | San RamonContra Costa, 2,659 businesses in total | 6 | 0.23% | +52% | Densely served |
Statewide, 0.15% of California businesses are in this industry. A lower local share can mean a genuine gap, or a market served from the next town over.
How to read these rankings
- Both measures are supply measures. They say nothing about how much each business earns, how large it is, or how much demand comes from outside the market.
- The two levels are not directly comparable to each other. A county figure is establishments per resident; a city figure is this industry’s share of the local business base against the statewide share. Compare counties to counties and cities to cities.
- A thinly served market can be a genuine gap or a market already served from a neighbouring town. The individual market pages list the nearest comparable places for exactly this check.
- A densely served market means competition, but it is also where the largest pool of existing businesses sits, and therefore where the most owners reach retirement each year.
- Counties are the more stable measure. City figures rest on ZIP code geography, which the Postal Service redraws as it pleases, so a city can gain or lose a ZIP between years.
Full pool service data for California/All industry rankings/Methodology
Sources
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 County Business Patterns. Establishment counts, employment and annual payroll by NAICS. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (2026Q1). Quarterly establishment counts and employment for employers covered by unemployment insurance. Retrieved 2026-09-08.
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 ZIP Code Business Patterns. Establishment counts by ZIP code and NAICS, aggregated over the ZIP codes assigned to each city, including the all-industry totals used as the local business base. Retrieved 2026-09-10.