The map above shows California and Pennsylvania side by side at exactly the same scale, using equal-area projections, so their true relative sizes are preserved.
California vs Pennsylvania Geography
Land area
- California has a land area of 155,859 square miles (403,673 km²), while Pennsylvania has 44,742 square miles (115,882 km²).
- California's land area is 3.5 times (248%) larger than Pennsylvania's.
Total area
- California: 163,694 square miles (423,965 km²) vs Pennsylvania: 46,054 square miles (119,279 km²), including inland and coastal water.
- California's total area is 3.6 times (255%) larger than Pennsylvania's.
Length
- California is 761 miles (1,224 km) long from north to south; Pennsylvania is 284 miles (458 km).
- California's north-south length is 2.7 times (168%) longer than Pennsylvania's.
Width
- California spans 706 miles (1,137 km) east to west; Pennsylvania spans 307 miles (495 km).
- California's east-west width is 2.3 times (130%) wider than Pennsylvania's.
Highest point
- California's highest point is Mount Whitney at 14,484 feet (4,415 m); Pennsylvania's is Mount Davis at 3,210 feet (978 m).
- Mount Whitney is 11,274 feet higher than Mount Davis.
Lowest point
- California's lowest point is Death Valley at -279 feet; Pennsylvania's is Delaware River at 0 feet.
- California's lowest point is 279 feet lower.
California vs Pennsylvania Population and History
Population
- California has a population of 39,431,263 (2024), while Pennsylvania has 13,078,751 (2024).
- California's population is 3.0 times (201%) larger than Pennsylvania's.
Population density
- California: 253.0 people per square mile vs Pennsylvania: 292.3.
- Pennsylvania's population density is 1.2 times (16%) higher than California's.
Biggest city
- California's biggest city is Los Angeles with 3,878,704 people; Pennsylvania's is Philadelphia with 1,573,916.
- Los Angeles' population is 2.5 times (146%) larger than Philadelphia's.
Largest metro area
- California's largest metropolitan area is Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area (12,927,614 people) vs Pennsylvania's Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area (6,330,422).
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area's population is 2.0 times (104%) larger than Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area's.
History
- California: Admitted to the Union on September 9, 1850, as the 31st state.
- Pennsylvania: Admitted to the Union on December 12, 1787, as the 2nd state.
- In its current form, Pennsylvania is the older of the two by 63 years.
California vs Pennsylvania Economy
GDP
- California's GDP is $4,048.1 billion (2024) vs Pennsylvania's $1,007.9 billion.
- California's economic output is 4.0 times (302%) larger than Pennsylvania's.
GDP per capita
- California: $102,662 per person vs Pennsylvania: $77,062.
- California's GDP per capita is 1.3 times (33%) higher than Pennsylvania's.
Average income
- California: $86,232 vs Pennsylvania: $70,678 average income per person (per capita personal income).
- California's average income is 1.2 times (22%) higher than Pennsylvania's.
California vs Pennsylvania Counties
Number of counties
- California has 58 counties, while Pennsylvania has 67.
- Pennsylvania's county count is 1.2 times (16%) higher than California's.
Biggest county by area
- California's largest county is San Bernardino County at 20,068 square miles; Pennsylvania's is Lycoming County at 1,229 square miles.
- San Bernardino County's land area is 16.3 times larger than Lycoming County's.
Smallest county by area
- California: San Francisco County (47 sq mi) vs Pennsylvania: Montour County (130 sq mi).
- Montour County's land area is 2.8 times (179%) larger than San Francisco County's.
Most populous county
- California: Los Angeles County (9,757,179 people) vs Pennsylvania: Philadelphia County (1,573,916 people).
- Los Angeles County's population is 6.2 times (520%) larger than Philadelphia County's.
Least populous county
- California: Alpine County (1,099 people) vs Pennsylvania: Cameron County (4,348 people).
- Cameron County's population is 4.0 times (296%) larger than Alpine County's.
Richest county
- California: Marin County ($190,891 per capita income) vs Pennsylvania: Chester County ($110,883).
- Marin County's income is 1.7 times (72%) richer than Chester County's.
Poorest county
- California: Trinity County ($42,191 per capita income) vs Pennsylvania: Forest County ($30,234).
- Trinity County's income is 1.4 times (40%) richer than Forest County's.
California vs Pennsylvania Taxes
State income tax
- California has a top income tax rate of 13.3%, while Pennsylvania has a top income tax rate of 3.07%.
- California's top rate is 10.23 percentage points higher.
Property tax
- California: 0.71% effective rate vs Pennsylvania: 1.16% of home value per year.
- Pennsylvania's rate is 0.45 percentage points higher.
Sales tax
- California: 9.03% combined state and average local rate vs Pennsylvania: 6.34%.
- California's combined rate is 2.69 percentage points higher.
Official Websites
California official website · Pennsylvania official website
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More Size Comparisons
All California size comparisons · All Pennsylvania size comparisons
Area, elevation and boundary figures come from official national statistics and US Census Bureau and Natural Earth boundary data; US state population, economic, county and tax figures come from the US Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Tax Foundation. Figures are rounded and for general reference.