Health care · County · California
Medical and dental practices in Kern County, CA
How Kern County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 45 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,411 of 2,394 scored counties
#28 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 1,798
- 208 chain locations (12%)
- Official establishments
- 935
- −3.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $348M
- On medical and dental services · $1,221 a household
- Spending per listing
- $194K
- 27% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 63.1
- 25% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 927,068
- +2.3% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in Kern County
The site report maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Kern County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Household spending on medical and dental services in Kern County comes to about $348M a year: $1,221 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. That is about $194K of household spending for each practice on map listings, 27% above the U.S. figure of $152K.
Kern County has 1,798 medical and dental practices on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 12% of them, against 11% across the U.S. That is 63.1 per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 84.5.
Official counts show 935 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in Kern County in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. That is one for every 305 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Another 421 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 17 SBA-backed loans worth $13.3M have gone to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in Kern County.
Population estimates show Kern County grew 2.3% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). For medical and dental practices, Kern County has a Groundwork market score of 45 (lower middle): #1,411 of 2,394 scored counties and #28 of 55 scored counties in California.
How Kern County compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the medical and dental practices counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Kern County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 63.1 | 88.3 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $194K | $166K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 305 | 199 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −3.6% | +2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.3% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,221 | $1,464 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $70,210 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 45 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 970 → 935−3.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 8,951
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $591.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 421Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,798208 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 2,282The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 17
- Amount
- $13.3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in Kern County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Kern County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 927,068+2.3% since 2020
- Households
- 284,931
- Median age
- 33.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 60%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 8,135 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 112
- Median household income
- $70,210+31.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,147
- Median home value
- $338,300
- Jobs located here
- 302,967
- Daytime population
- 882,683Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Kern County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the medical and dental practices on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Kern County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDoctors, dentists and clinics across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in California for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in California, with Kern County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yuba County, CA | 85 | 67 | 23.4 | $531K | +8.2% | #33 of 2,394 |
| 2San Benito County, CA | 80 | 86 | 41.8 | $372K | +8.6% | #104 of 2,394 |
| 3Calaveras County, CA | 73 | 66 | 35.8 | $367K | +2.8% | #252 of 2,394 |
| 4Trinity County, CA | 69 | 11 | 19.7 | $566K | −2.3% | #358 of 2,394 |
| 5Colusa County, CA | 69 | 23 | 30.6 | $407K | −0.1% | #363 of 2,394 |
| 6Madera County, CA | 69 | 194 | 42.8 | $296K | +7.4% | #378 of 2,394 |
| 7Mariposa County, CA | 64 | 16 | 21.3 | $569K | −1.2% | #557 of 2,394 |
| 8Yolo County, CA | 64 | 411 | 53.6 | $261K | +3.1% | #584 of 2,394 |
| 9San Joaquin County, CA | 63 | 1,341 | 54.7 | $253K | +5.5% | #621 of 2,394 |
| 10Lassen County, CA | 61 | 28 | 30.3 | $383K | −13.1% | #688 of 2,394 |
| 28Kern County, CA | 45 | 1,798 | 63.1 | $194K | +2.3% | #1,411 of 2,394 |
Other business types in Kern County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics45
- Dentists and orthodontists48
- Primary care and pediatrics50
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics51
- Chiropractors77
- Physical therapy73
- Optometrists and eye care64
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in Kern County, CA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,798 medical and dental practices in Kern County. 208 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 935 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, down 3.6% from 2019. Official counts list 421 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Kern County, CA spend on medical and dental services?
About $348M a year, or $1,221 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,798 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $194K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 284,931 households in Kern County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Kern County, CA compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
Kern County has 63.1 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 25% below the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $194K, 27% above the U.S. figure of $152K. At the U.S. ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, Kern County would have about 2,282, against 1,798 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 305 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is Kern County, CA growing?
Population estimates put Kern County at 927,068 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 284,931 households. The median household income in Kern County is $70,210 a year, 13% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Kern County scores 45 for medical and dental practices (lower middle), #1,411 of 2,394 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Kern County. It maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for medical and dental practices · All 56 business types in Kern County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Kern County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Kern County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.