25 cities
| City | Rank | 2025 Pop. ↓ | 2020 Pop. | Annual Change | Density | Area (mi²) | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Cruz | 1 | 60,541 | 62,941 | -0.79% | 4,752 | 13 | City |
| Watsonville | 2 | 49,790 | 52,482 | -1.07% | 7,337 | 7 | City |
| Scotts Valley | 3 | 11,646 | 12,228 | -0.99% | 2,522 | 5 | City |
| Soquel | 4 | 10,720 | 10,721 | 0.68% | 2,332 | 5 | CDP |
| Capitola | 5 | 9,340 | 9,920 | -1.23% | 5,859 | 2 | City |
| Rio Mar | 6 | 8,955 | 9,713 | -0.19% | 2,985 | 3 | CDP |
| Ben Lomond | 7 | 7,500 | 7,378 | 1.13% | 896 | 8 | CDP |
| Pleasure Point | 8 | 7,386 | 6,173 | 7.14% | 9,848 | 1 | CDP |
| Aptos | 9 | 6,712 | 6,245 | 0.48% | 1,020 | 7 | CDP |
| Boulder Creek | 10 | 5,634 | 5,305 | 0.84% | 750 | 8 | CDP |
| Twin Lakes | 11 | 5,133 | 5,546 | 0.27% | 7,428 | 1 | CDP |
| Seacliff | 12 | 3,621 | 3,580 | 0.67% | 4,960 | 1 | CDP |
| Felton | 13 | 3,612 | 3,197 | -0.82% | 778 | 5 | CDP |
| Freedom | 14 | 3,432 | 3,959 | 0.7% | 3,029 | 1 | CDP |
| Day Valley | 15 | 3,213 | 3,414 | -0.4% | 174 | 19 | CDP |
| Bonny Doon | 16 | 2,903 | 2,962 | 0.52% | 175 | 17 | CDP |
| Corralitos | 17 | 2,111 | 2,260 | -0.66% | 237 | 9 | CDP |
| Aptos Hills-Larkin Valley | 18 | 1,587 | 1,397 | -3.23% | 171 | 9 | CDP |
| Pasatiempo | 19 | 1,320 | 1,226 | 1.46% | 1,483 | 1 | CDP |
| Mount Hermon | 20 | 1,208 | 1,394 | 0.92% | 1,858 | 1 | CDP |
| Brookdale | 21 | 912 | 1,293 | -7.32% | 237 | 4 | CDP |
| Lompico | 22 | 854 | 881 | -2.18% | 253 | 3 | CDP |
| Davenport | 23 | 710 | 509 | 2.9% | 250 | 3 | CDP |
| Paradise Park | 24 | 575 | 468 | 2.13% | 2,068 | 0 | CDP |
| Zayante | 25 | 387 | 765 | -5.38% | 137 | 3 | CDP |
Santa Cruz is the largest city in Santa Cruz County, with a population of 60,541.
Zayante is the smallest city in Santa Cruz County, with a population of 387.
There are 25 cities in Santa Cruz County, California.