San Pablo is a medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of California. With a population of 31,389 people and nine associated neighborhoods, San Pablo is the 245th largest community in California.

Housing costs in San Pablo are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in California.

San Pablo is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery.

One downside of living in San Pablo, however, is that residents on average have to contend with a long commute, spending on average 33.66 minutes every day commuting to work. However, local public transit is widely used. For those who would prefer to avoid driving entirely and leave their car at home, it may be an option to use the transit instead.

For the size of the city, public transportation in San Pablo is quite heavily used. Mostly, people who use it for their daily commute are taking the bus. For San Pablo, the benefits are reduced air pollution and congestion on the highways.

The percentage of adults in San Pablo with college degrees is slightly lower than the national average of 21.84% for all communities. 15.74% of adults in San Pablo have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.

The per capita income in San Pablo in 2022 was $27,043, which is lower middle income relative to California and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $108,172 for a family of four. However, San Pablo contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

San Pablo is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call San Pablo home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. People of Hispanic or Latino origin are the most prevalent group in San Pablo, accounting for 56.52% of the city’s residents (people of Hispanic or Latino origin can be of any race). The greatest number of San Pablo residents report their race to be Asian, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in San Pablo include English, Irish, German, European, and Italian.

Foreign born people are also an important part of San Pablo's cultural character, accounting for 39.48% of the city’s population.

The most common language spoken in San Pablo is Spanish. Other important languages spoken here include English and Tagalog.