Health care · Metro area · California
Medical and dental practices in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area
How the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 38 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #290 of 387 scored metro areas
#20 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 12,001
- 823 chain locations (7%)
- Official establishments
- 6,077
- +6.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.8B
- On medical and dental services · $1,502 a household
- Spending per listing
- $147K
- 4% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 102.5
- 21% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 3,282,248
- −0.6% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. 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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area comes to about $1.8B a year: $1,502 per household, 17% above the U.S. average. Spread across 12,001 medical and dental practices, that is $147K per practice, 4% below the U.S. figure of $152K.
The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area has 12,001 medical and dental practices on map listings as of September 2026. 823 of them (7%) are chain locations, against 11% across the U.S. That comes to 102.5 for every 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 84.5.
Official counts show 6,077 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area in 2023, up 6.4% from 2019. That is one for every 193 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Official counts list 3,703 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 111 SBA-backed loans worth $88.7M have gone to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −0.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area scores 38 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for medical and dental practices, ranking #290 of 387 scored metro areas and #20 of 25 scored metro areas based in California.
How the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area 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 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 102.5 | 88.3 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $147K | $166K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 193 | 199 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +6.4% | +2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,502 | $1,464 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $106,268 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 38 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 6,077+6.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 42,003
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.7B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3,703Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 12,001823 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 11,536The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 111
- Amount
- $88.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area, 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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 3,282,248−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 1,171,278
- Median age
- 38.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 4,211 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 781
- Median household income
- $106,268+34.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $141,250
- Median home value
- $854,700
- Jobs located here
- 1,516,991
- Daytime population
- 3,269,716Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. 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 metro areas in California for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in California, with the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Stockton-Lodi, CA | 78 | 1,341 | 54.7 | $253K | +5.5% | #20 of 387 |
| 2Vallejo, CA | 76 | 841 | 53.4 | $271K | +0.6% | #28 of 387 |
| 3Yuba City, CA | 74 | 369 | 59.6 | $214K | +3.3% | #34 of 387 |
| 4Merced, CA | 73 | 383 | 44.5 | $264K | +5.1% | #37 of 387 |
| 5Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 68 | 6,153 | 69.8 | $205K | +3.2% | #63 of 387 |
| 6El Centro, CA | 63 | 266 | 53.6 | $208K | +1.1% | #90 of 387 |
| 7Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 62 | 1,798 | 63.1 | $194K | +2.3% | #100 of 387 |
| 8Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 60 | 10,360 | 71.4 | $191K | +3.5% | #110 of 387 |
| 9Visalia, CA | 59 | 781 | 54.5 | $224K | +2.4% | #115 of 387 |
| 10Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 59 | 1,496 | 78.3 | $191K | −0.4% | #116 of 387 |
| 20San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 38 | 12,001 | 102.5 | $147K | −0.6% | #290 of 387 |
Other business types in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
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 clinics38
- Dentists and orthodontists25
- Primary care and pediatrics48
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics46
- Chiropractors41
- Physical therapy49
- Optometrists and eye care44
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 12,001 medical and dental practices in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. 823 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 6,077 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, up 6.4% from 2019. Official counts also show 3,703 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area spend on medical and dental services?
About $1.8B a year, or $1,502 per household. That is 17% above the U.S. average (an index of 117, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 12,001 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $147K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,171,278 households in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area has 102.5 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 21% above the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $147K, 4% below the U.S. figure of $152K. At the U.S. ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area would have about 11,536, against 12,001 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 193 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count rose 6.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area at 3,282,248 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 1,171,278 households. The median household income in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area is $106,268 a year, 32% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 34.6% 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. The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area scores 38 for medical and dental practices (lower middle), #290 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. 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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area?
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 the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. 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.