California
Follow the light. Discover California.
Beyond the coast lie ancient forests and snow-fed rivers, and people shaping new ways of life.
California is more than one idea.
Traveling south along the Pacific, the landscape shifts between coastal cities, agricultural valleys, mountains and desert. The San Francisco Bay Area, metropolitan Los Angeles, San Diego and the Central Valley have different industries and living costs. Inland Sacramento, the state capital, is a reminder that California extends far beyond its coast.
Film and technology carry California’s image around the world. Food production, ports, public services and immigrant communities sustain a much wider everyday life. Understanding the state means looking beyond its familiar city images to the water, land, work and communities that make them possible.
Time belongs to the forest.
The towering coast redwoods changed how people viewed forests. The trunk stretches upward, with shadows, fallen leaves, ferns, and moist air below. Protecting the forest, it's not just about preserving a few giant trees but the entire environment they depend on.
Redwoods are adapted to a certain degree of fire, but extreme heat and severe fires still cause harm. State parks are working with indigenous communities to complement contemporary conservation efforts with long-accumulated land management expertise.
A valley with more than a view.
The scale of stone.
Granite forms the distinct contours of the valley, with rivers and glaciers constantly rewriting the terrain. The cliffs, waterfalls, and valley floors are not separate sights but results of various geological processes working together.
The memory of a homeland.
Local indigenous communities have a sustained and deep connection to this valley. Archaeological sites, oral traditions, and contemporary tribal communities make the history of the national park transcend sightseeing and photography to include home, migration, and protection.
Water keeps moving.
Mountain snowpack stores water during cold seasons, which melts to replenish rivers and reservoirs. It shapes the landscape and influences urban water supplies, agricultural production, and river ecosystems.
An unseen connection.
Snowpack acts like a natural reservoir, accumulating in winter and gradually releasing in spring and summer. Changes in rainfall timing, temperatures, and melting speeds affect the seasonal schedule of water supply. Continuous coordination is needed among urban, agricultural, and ecological protection sectors.
The irrigation equipment, soil cover, and planting arrangements in the orchard are all responses to water and soil conditions. Agriculture occurs not just during harvest but also during the long management, maintenance, and waiting.
Agricultural cash receipts, 2025
California farms and ranches received approximately $64.695 billion in cash receipts from agricultural products, including about $6.874 billion from almonds and $5.213 billion from grapes. These figures measure receipts, not profit after costs, and do not describe the results of every individual farm.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service: 2025 state agricultural cash receipts, released September 3, 2026. Figures are rounded to the precision shown.
Distant farms, close connections.
In local markets, seasons are not just a calendar. The harvest of fruits and vegetables from different vendors show the connection between origin, weather, and labor. Direct sales also allow producers to explain varieties, ripeness, and preservation methods.
California's dining table is shaped by long migrations and cultural exchanges. Different communities bring familiar cooking methods to new locations, where they meet local ingredients. Small restaurants in cities, family kitchens, and markets often offer more specific flavors than a generic "California style."
Innovation has a home.
Silicon Valley's formation is linked to semiconductor companies, engineering talent, and a knowledge network. The term "Silicon Valley" appeared in reporting in 1971, but technological accumulation here goes back much further. Today's software and digital services are built on a longer history of research and development, manufacturing, and education.
The Bay Area is a region, not a single city. San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and neighboring communities are connected through jobs, housing and transport. Businesses choosing a location need to consider workers, customers and commuting together, rather than rely on the region’s reputation alone.
Outside of the tech industry, schools, hospitals, retail, restaurants, and community services also make up one's life. Whether a place can sustainably attract people depends on both opportunities and whether one can settle down daily.
A city beyond the silver screen.
The metal exterior of the concert hall constantly alters its expression, with spaces organized around listening and performance. Since 2003, it has become an important venue for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, bringing classical, contemporary, and various musical traditions into the city's life.
Los Angeles’s cultural life depends on performers and on the people working in technology, design, staging and management. Film, music and visual art take shape in venues and neighborhoods across the city, sustained by many kinds of ongoing collaboration.
Industries change. The ocean remains.
Cannery Row grew around sardine fishing and processing. After the industry’s rise and decline, its old industrial buildings gradually found new uses. The Monterey Bay Aquarium occupies the site of a former sardine cannery.
From fisheries resources to understanding the ocean, the relationship between places and nature evolves. Street architecture, literary memories, and ocean education allow a slice of industrial history to be seen by today's people.
Beyond the sea breeze, a different quiet.
The Mojave and Colorado deserts meet in Joshua Tree National Park. Differences in elevation, temperature, and precipitation affect the distribution of plants and animals, and alter how people imagine "desert".
Deserts are not empty. Slow-growing plants, rock shadows, and brief rain support intricate life connections. Observing them requires slowing down and respecting the limitations brought by moisture, temperature, and distance.
Exports connect industries to the world.
2025 California goods exports
Computer and electronic products accounted for approximately $54.3 billion in exports, California’s largest manufacturing export category. Ports, airports, warehouses and professional services connect those products with customers. Technology and physical transport are closely linked.
These figures show trade volumes and cannot be directly converted into local new orders. Services targeted at exporting businesses require further understanding of product types, modes of transportation, and delivery locations. Services aimed at residents, on the other hand, rely more on the genuine needs of their local community.
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, 2025 state goods export figures. These are merchandise figures and do not represent total trade in services.
Industries & establishments · 2023
The work that keeps communities running.
Healthcare, retail, professional services, restaurants, and manufacturing form the everyday foundation of California’s employment. The industry mix differs between metropolitan areas and agricultural regions.
The state recorded 1,029,689 employer establishments and 16,405,436 paid employees. A single company may operate several stores, offices, or factories, so establishments are not a count of registered companies.
U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 County Business Patterns. The series primarily covers private, nonfarm establishments with paid employees. Employment is measured for the pay period that includes March 12. The 2023 release was the latest in this series available when checked; it is not a measure of current monthly employment.
Annual tax and fees: two separate costs.
For an applicable LLC taxed as a partnership or disregarded entity, the annual tax is generally $800. If its relevant total income, calculated under California’s statutory rules, is $300,000, it falls within the $250,000–$499,999 bracket and also owes a $900 fee. This income measure is not net profit.
The example excludes other taxes, registered agent fees, accounting and premises-related permits. A first-year annual tax exemption applied to certain tax years beginning in 2021–2023; it does not automatically apply to a business formed in 2026. Forming in another state also does not remove the need to assess California registration and tax obligations when operating there.
California Franchise Tax Board LLC guidance and Publication 3556, checked in September 2026. Company searches remain within this website.
A touch of California gold.
Thin petals hold bright golden-orange, while fine leaves add to the delicate silhouette. The California poppy becomes the state's official symbol and enters people's memories of spring fields.
California's beauty isn't just in its vast valleys and coastlines. The roadside flowers, corner markets, and everyday conversations in different languages also contribute to the details that make this land worth revisiting.
An editorial feature by STATE.REPORT. Image creators and licenses are credited below.
Sources & further reading
U.S. Census Bureau: state population estimates for July 1, 2025.
California State Parks: Redwoods Ecosystem, Fire and Land Management.
California State Parks and Tolowa partners: cultural burning in 2025.
National Park Service: Granite, Valley, and Glaciated Landscapes.
National Park Service: Indigenous History, Oral Traditions, and Archaeological Preservation.
California Department of Water Resources: Snowmelt, runoff, and urban and rural water supply.
USDA Economic Research Service: state agricultural cash receipts released in September 2026.
Monterey Bay Aquarium: the rise and decline of sardine fishing and the history of the aquarium site.
Los Angeles Philharmonic: Disney Concert Hall and Performances.
Computer History Museum: semiconductor companies, engineers and the origin of the Silicon Valley name.
National Park Service: Joshua Tree National Park, located in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts.
California Secretary of State: Natural and historical elements in the poppy and state seal.
Image credits & licenses
Bixby Creek Bridge, California, USA - May 2013.jpg · Diliff · CC BY-SA 3.0。
Muir Woods, Early Light, Walking Among the Quiet Giants - Flickr - dalecruse.jpg · Dale Cruse - 11M SF views from San Francisco, CA, USA · CC BY 4.0。
Tunnel View, Yosemite Valley, Yosemite NP - Diliff.jpg · Diliff · CC BY-SA 3.0。
Drought Mitigation-Micro Irrigation Sprinklers and Cover Crop at Mota Ranch (20150722-NRCS-LSC-0061).jpg · USDAgov · Public domain。
Image-Disney Concert Hall by Carol Highsmith edit.jpg · Carol M. Highsmith · Public domain。
Golden Gate Bridge as seen from Battery East.jpg · Frank Schulenburg · CC BY-SA 4.0。
Container ship NYK Themis at the Port of Los Angeles.jpg · Downtowngal · CC BY-SA 4.0。
DSC26380, Cannery Row, Monterey, California, USA (5797352420).jpg · Jim G from Silicon Valley, CA, USA · CC BY 2.0。
Cholla Cactus at Joshua Tree National Park.jpg · Charlesdarling · CC0。
Rockridge, Oakland (October 20, 2013) Farmers Market.jpg · Sharon Hahn Darlin · CC BY 2.0。