At yesterday's Santa Ana GROW Conference, Dr. Wallace Walrod presented his 2025 Economic Indicators report which offers valuable insights into Santa Ana's economic landscape and reveals promising trends and strategic opportunities for businesses across sectors. The conference featured key presentations from Wendy Haase-Roberts, President and CEO of Travel Santa Ana, and Alvaro Nuñez, Santa Ana City Manager, who provided additional context on tourism initiatives and development projects reshaping the city. This comprehensive analysis examines everything from demographic shifts to industry growth patterns, providing a roadmap for business planning in our community.
Perhaps the most encouraging trend is Santa Ana's remarkable income growth. The inflation-adjusted median household income has grown by 34.9% between 2013-2023, significantly outpacing Orange County's 12.7% growth during the same period. While the 2023 median household income in Santa Ana ($85,914) remains below the county average ($110,042), this rapid growth rate indicates our community is making substantial economic progress.
The city's household density continues to increase, reaching 3,042 households per square mile in 2024, more than double Orange County's average density. This population concentration creates natural customer bases for retail, service, and hospitality businesses.
Dr. Walrod's demographic analysis reveals that Santa Ana possesses a significant competitive advantage through its younger population compared to the rest of Orange County. The age distribution data shows Santa Ana has substantially higher percentages of residents in the 25-34 age bracket (nearly 10% compared to county averages) and stronger representation in the 15-24 age groups. This demographic reality positions Santa Ana as home to Orange County's future workforce, with younger residents who will be entering or advancing in their careers over the next decade. This youthful population creates substantial opportunities for businesses to develop targeted workforce initiatives, including specialized training programs, educational partnerships with local schools and colleges, structured internship pipelines, and mentorship programs that connect experienced professionals with emerging talent. Companies that invest in these workforce development strategies can cultivate skilled employees specifically tailored to their industry needs while building community goodwill. As Dr. Walrod emphasized, Santa Ana's demographic profile represents not just current economic strength but long-term potential for sustainable growth as these younger residents build careers, form households, and increase their purchasing power—particularly when supported by strategic workforce development programs that align with the city's industry strengths.
Santa Ana's business landscape closely mirrors Orange County's, with approximately 86% of businesses employing fewer than 20 workers. Small businesses remain the backbone of our local economy, with notable strength in key industries:
Overall employment in Santa Ana has shown a solid pattern of growth (11.2% from 2013-2023), with total employment reaching 164,936 jobs in 2023. Average annual wages have also increased, though more modestly at 6.6% over the same period.
With manufacturing representing the largest sector of Santa Ana's economy and several specialized manufacturing clusters showing extraordinary strength:
The retail and tourism sectors show impressive post-pandemic recovery. Retail outlets in Santa Ana have increased from 7,433 in 2015 to 9,205 in 2024, with total taxable transactions growing from $931 million to $1.21 billion in the same period:
Healthcare shows consistent strength, with 2.9% recent growth and a projected 3.4% growth rate for 2023-2025:
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services saw 4.0% growth (2023-2024) and contribute $2.8 billion to Santa Ana's economy:
Santa Ana’s tourism economy is experiencing a strong resurgence, creating new opportunities for local businesses in hospitality, entertainment, and services. This trend was underscored during the 2025 Santa Ana GROW Conference by Wendy Haase-Roberts, President and CEO of Travel Santa Ana, whose presentation showcased Santa Ana’s rising profile as a regional destination for both domestic and international travelers.
According to the data presented, visitor spending in Santa Ana increased by 9.2% from 2022 to 2023, reaching $414.7 million. Employment in the tourism sector has also rebounded, with 2,980 tourism-related jobs in 2023, closing in on the pre-pandemic high of 3,530. Santa Ana’s walkability, proximity to cultural landmarks, and growing events calendar continue to drive traffic to local businesses.
Some of the most notable opportunities within the tourism and hospitality sector include:
Santa Ana’s tourism strategy is focused not just on attracting more visitors, but on creating economic ripple effects for local entrepreneurs, artists, and service providers. With the city's unique blend of culture, history, and community-driven initiatives, the hospitality sector is positioned for strong, sustained growth in the years ahead.
At the 2025 Santa Ana GROW Conference, City Manager Alvaro Nuñez delivered a compelling presentation highlighting how the City of Santa Ana is actively driving economic growth through an ambitious slate of commercial and residential development projects. His message was clear: Santa Ana is open for business, and the City is committed to accelerating smart, inclusive growth.
With more than 22,000 businesses across its 27 square miles, and situated just 32 miles from Los Angeles, Santa Ana’s strategic location at the heart of Orange County makes it a natural hub for investment. To support this growth, the City has implemented tools like the Planning & Building Express initiative and a recently adopted General Plan (2022)—both of which streamline the development process and provide a clear, forward-thinking framework for land use, zoning, and community investment.
During his presentation, Nuñez outlined a dynamic mix of current and upcoming projects shaping the city's economic future. These include:
Together, these projects represent more than just new construction—they are part of a larger strategy to increase housing supply, expand job opportunities, and attract high-quality businesses to Santa Ana. With leadership from Alvaro Núñez and coordination across City departments, Santa Ana is becoming a model for how local governments can facilitate thoughtful, sustainable urban growth.
If you’re a developer, investor, or business owner considering expansion, Santa Ana is ready to partner with you.
The report identifies the most promising growth industries for Santa Ana over the next three years:
Local businesses can leverage these trends through several strategies:
Santa Ana has developed specialized industry concentrations that aren't just above average—they're off the charts. While most cities consider a location quotient of 2.0 to be specialized, Santa Ana boasts truly extraordinary numbers:
For businesses, these remarkable concentrations create immediate opportunities: tap into established supply chains, access specialized talent pools, leverage shared infrastructure, and benefit from the knowledge spillovers that naturally occur within these intense industry clusters. Whether your business operates directly in these sectors or provides supporting products and services, Santa Ana offers ready-made ecosystems that would take decades and millions of dollars to develop elsewhere.
The message is clear: these aren't just statistics—they're invitations to plug into thriving business ecosystems with built-in advantages that can dramatically accelerate your company's growth and profitability.
The Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce is committed to helping local businesses translate these economic indicators into actionable strategies. For more information or to join the Santa Ana Chamber or assistance interpreting this data for your specific business, please contact the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce at (714) 541-5353
Printed courtesy of santaanachamber.com/ – Contact the Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce for more information.
1631 W. Sunflower Ave., Suite C-35, Santa Ana, CA 92704 – (714) 541-5353 – info@santaanachamber.com