California and Florida - US states comparison

The following is a comparison between California and Florida, two of the most populous states in the United States. Let’s read.

California and Florida – US states comparison

California has both a larger GDP and a higher GDP per capita than Florida.

BEA (2025)	California	Florida
GDP	$4.25 trillion	$1.83 trillion
GDP rank in the US	1st	4th

• California is roughly 2.5 times larger than Florida.

• California is the most populous state on the west coast, while Florida is the most populous state on the east coast.

	California	Florida
Area	approximately 163,700 square miles (approximately 423,970 sq km)	approximately 65,760 square miles (approximately 170,310 sq km)
Area rank in the US	3rd	22nd
Population	39.4 million (2025 estimate)	23.5 million (2025 estimate)
Population rank	1st	3rd
Capital city	Sacramento	Tallahassee
Largest city	Los Angeles	Jacksonville
Nickname	The Golden State	The Sunshine State
Became a state of the US	9 September, 1850	3 March, 1845

	California	Florida
Region	Western United States	Southern United States
Highest natural point	Mount Whitney (14,505 ft/4,421 m)	Britton Hill (345 ft/105 m)
Forest cover	~33% (2016)	~51% (2016)
Borders	Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and Mexico to the south	Alabama and Georgia to the north
International border	Yes, with Mexico	No
Coastline	Pacific Ocean	Gulf of America (Gulf of Mexico) and the Atlantic Ocean

	California	Florida
Popular places to visit	Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sequoia National Park, Malibu, Yosemite National Park, San Diego, etc.	Miami, Orlando, Key West, Everglades National Park, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, etc.
Number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites	3	1
Number of National Parks	9	3

California

Florida