Ham radio operators in California: new licenses by county
90,252 licensed amateur radio operators; 2,726 new in the past 12 months. Updated weekly from FCC data.
At a glance · Data as of
- New hams · last 30 days
- 164
- New hams · last 12 months
- 2,726
- ▼ 5% vs prior 12 mo
- Active licensed hams
- 90,252
- Upgrades · 12 mo
- 888
- Vanity callsigns · 12 mo
- 620
- Address updates · 12 mo
- 775
- Often a move into the area
- Expiring · next 6 mo
- 5,554
About ham radio in California
California added 2,726 new amateur radio operators in the past 12 months, about the same as the year before (down 5%). California ranks #1 of 52 states and territories for new licenses. Los Angeles County leads the state with 481 new hams. Among larger counties, San Luis Obispo County is growing fastest. Technicians make up 58% of the state’s licensees, above the U.S. average of 48%, a strong pipeline of new operators who may be ready for an Elmer program.
New hams by month
Show data table
| Month | New hams |
|---|---|
| Oct 2025 | 6 |
| Nov 2025 | 245 |
| Dec 2025 | 222 |
| Jan 2026 | 219 |
| Feb 2026 | 293 |
| Mar 2026 | 233 |
| Apr 2026 | 267 |
| May 2026 | 332 |
| Jun 2026 | 276 |
| Jul 2026 | 239 |
| Aug 2026 | 228 |
| Sep 2026 | 172 |
| Total | 2,732 |
License classes
| Class | Hams | Share | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Technician | 52,601 | 58% | 48% |
| General | 18,026 | 20% | 25% |
| Amateur Extra | 15,281 | 17% | 21% |
| Advanced | 2,557 | 3% | 3% |
| Novice / Other | 1,787 | 2% | 2% |
Bar = California share · Tick = U.S. share
In the past 12 months, 370 operators upgraded to General and 442 to Amateur Extra.
How California compares
#1 of 52 states and territories for new hams in the past 12 months
| Per 1,000 active hams | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| New hams, past 12 months | 30.2 | 32.3 |
| Upgrades, past 12 months | 9.8 | 14.7 |
| Expiring, next 6 months | 61.5 | 57.3 |
2,726 new hams in California this past year. Get next month’s list free.
Sign Up Free →Top 10 California counties for new hams
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| # | County | New hams 12 mo | Change vs prior year | Active hams | New per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Angeles County | 481 | ▼ 1% | 15,862 | 30.3 |
| 2 | San Diego County | 252 | ▼ 2% | 8,704 | 29.0 |
| 3 | Orange County | 202 | ▼ 2% | 7,679 | 26.3 |
| 4 | Santa Clara County | 199 | ▼ 21% | 7,161 | 27.8 |
| 5 | Alameda County | 138 | ▼ 9% | 4,116 | 33.5 |
| 6 | San Bernardino County | 122 | ▼ 43% | 5,288 | 23.1 |
| 7 | San Mateo County | 104 | ▼ 16% | 2,969 | 35.0 |
| 8 | Riverside County | 97 | ▼ 29% | 4,502 | 21.5 |
| 9 | Contra Costa County | 91 | ▼ 23% | 3,009 | 30.2 |
| 10 | San Francisco County | 91 | ▲ 5% | 1,898 | 47.9 |
All California counties
46 counties with their own page. Numbers are new hams in the past 12 months.
- Alameda County138 new hams in 12 months
- Amador County6 new hams in 12 months
- Butte County16 new hams in 12 months
- Calaveras County5 new hams in 12 months
- Contra Costa County91 new hams in 12 months
- Del Norte County2 new hams in 12 months
- El Dorado County36 new hams in 12 months
- Fresno County24 new hams in 12 months
- Humboldt County12 new hams in 12 months
- Inyo County1 new hams in 12 months
- Kern County41 new hams in 12 months
- Kings County4 new hams in 12 months
- Lake County2 new hams in 12 months
- Los Angeles County481 new hams in 12 months
- Madera County6 new hams in 12 months
- Marin County14 new hams in 12 months
- Mendocino County1 new hams in 12 months
- Merced County4 new hams in 12 months
- Monterey County21 new hams in 12 months
- Napa County7 new hams in 12 months
- Nevada County12 new hams in 12 months
- Orange County202 new hams in 12 months
- Placer County45 new hams in 12 months
- Riverside County97 new hams in 12 months
- Sacramento County84 new hams in 12 months
- San Bernardino County122 new hams in 12 months
- San Diego County252 new hams in 12 months
- San Francisco County91 new hams in 12 months
- San Joaquin County33 new hams in 12 months
- San Luis Obispo County60 new hams in 12 months
- San Mateo County104 new hams in 12 months
- Santa Barbara County16 new hams in 12 months
- Santa Clara County199 new hams in 12 months
- Santa Cruz County52 new hams in 12 months
- Shasta County13 new hams in 12 months
- Siskiyou County1 new hams in 12 months
- Solano County28 new hams in 12 months
- Sonoma County40 new hams in 12 months
- Stanislaus County28 new hams in 12 months
- Sutter County4 new hams in 12 months
- Tehama County1 new hams in 12 months
- Tulare County12 new hams in 12 months
- Tuolumne County7 new hams in 12 months
- Ventura County63 new hams in 12 months
- Yolo County14 new hams in 12 months
- Yuba County2 new hams in 12 months
Smaller California counties
These 12 counties have too few licensees or too little recent activity for a page of their own, so their numbers are listed here.
| County | Active hams | New hams · 12 mo |
|---|---|---|
| Alpine County | 10 | 0 |
| Colusa County | 36 | 1 |
| Glenn County | 41 | 0 |
| Imperial County | 162 | 6 |
| Lassen County | 94 | 0 |
| Mariposa County | 99 | 0 |
| Modoc County | 46 | 0 |
| Mono County | 77 | 1 |
| Plumas County | 138 | 1 |
| San Benito County | 222 | 0 |
| Sierra County | 24 | 0 |
| Trinity County | 57 | 1 |
Neighboring states
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Figures may be reused with credit to Ham Recruiter (CC BY 4.0).
Questions about hams in California
How many ham radio operators are in California?
90,252 active amateur radio licensees are on file for California as of Oct 1, 2026.
How many new hams were licensed in California last year?
2,726 people in California received their first FCC amateur radio license in the 12 months ending Oct 1, 2026.
Which California counties have the most new hams?
In the past 12 months: Los Angeles County (481), San Diego County (252) and Orange County (202).
Where does this data come from?
From the FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) public amateur license database, which we download every Monday. Addresses are matched to counties with the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder. This page shows totals only.
Can I see the names or call signs on this page?
No. Public pages show totals only. Verified Ham Recruiter users can search and export lists for outreach; see how licensee information is handled.
About this data
Data as of . Source: FCC Universal Licensing System (ULS) weekly amateur license database; county from U.S. Census Bureau geocoding. Aggregates only, no individual licensee data is shown. Aggregate figures © Ham Recruiter, CC BY 4.0.
How we count
- New ham: an active licensee whose first license was granted in the period.
- Address updates: a change of FCC mailing address, often a move into the area.
- Counts use each licensee’s current FCC address. Someone licensed here who later moved is counted where they live now.
- Each license keeps only its most recent event of each type, so two upgrades in one year count once.
- PO-box-only addresses often can’t be matched to a county, so rural counties are slightly undercounted.
100% of California licensees could be matched to a county.