# Merced, California — #3,089 of 3,144 counties

> Liberty Moving composite score 4.17 of 10. FIPS 06047. Population 291,920. v4 — beta, 30 October 2026, sourced values.

About 291,900 people live in Merced, California. It ranks #3,089 of 3,144 counties for liberty, and #51 of 58 in California. The combined sales tax is 7.75%, higher than in 80% of counties. Property tax takes about 0.67% of a home's value each year, less than in 57% of counties. Local government employs a larger share of working residents than in 84% of counties. The homicide rate is higher than in 84% of counties. Life expectancy is about 76.8 years, longer than in 61% of counties. Air quality is worse than in 95% of counties (a typical day's air quality index is 51), and flood and hurricane risk is higher than in 91% of counties. On this site's state scores, California gets 4.79 of 10 for economic freedom, based on the Fraser Institute's ranking, and 1 of 10 for gun rights.

## Scores

| Factor | Level | Score (0–10) | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser Institute state ranking | state | 4.79 |  |
| 2A | state | 1.00 |  |
| Air quality | county | 4.90 |  |
| GOP + LP vote for President | county | 5.12 |  |
| Homicide rate | county | 5.92 |  |
| Sales tax | county | 2.95 |  |
| Property tax | county | 6.65 |  |
| Floods / hurricanes | county | 0.53 |  |
| Life expectancy | county | 6.80 |  |
| Government employees | county | 1.40 |  |
| Single-parent households | county | 2.46 |  |

"est" marks a derived or placeholder value with no published county figure.

## Neighbors

- #2876 Santa Clara, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06085.md
- #3117 Fresno, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06019.md
- #2879 Mariposa, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06043.md
- #2917 San Benito, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06069.md
- #3018 Stanislaus, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06099.md
- #3032 Madera, California — https://libertymoving.org/counties/06039.md

## Links

- Page: https://libertymoving.org/counties/06047
- Compare: https://libertymoving.org/compare?a=06047
- Methodology: https://libertymoving.org/methodology
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