Sacramento

Sacramento River

Sacramento, city, capital of California, U.S., and seat (1850) of Sacramento county, in the north-central part of the state. It is situated in the Sacramento Valley (the northern portion of the vast Central Valley) along the Sacramento River at its confluence with the American River, about 90 miles (145 km) northeast of San Francisco and 45 miles (72 km) north of Stockton. The city site itself is flat, but the land gradually rises to the east on the approach to the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. The area experiences long, hot, dry summers and cool, damp winters with periodic foggy spells.

Sacramento, one of the state’s oldest incorporated communities, lies at the heart of a four-county metropolitan area. Suburbs—concentrated largely to the north and east of the city—include Citrus Heights, Folsom, Carmichael, North Highlands, and Roseville; other communities include Parkway (south) and West Sacramento (west). Inc. city, 1850. Area city, 99 square miles (256 square km). Pop. (2010) 466,488; Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville Metro Area, 2,149,127; (2020) 524,943; Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom Metro Area, 2,397,382.