Hundreds of San Diegans join 2026 Point-in-Time Count to measure homelessness across the county
A pre-dawn census designed to produce a one-night snapshot
Hundreds of San Diegans fanned out across neighborhoods and unincorporated areas early Thursday, January 29, 2026, as part of the region’s annual Point-in-Time Count, a federally required census used nationwide to estimate homelessness on a single night in late January.
The effort is organized through San Diego County’s Continuum of Care and is coordinated locally by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. Volunteers and trained team leads are deployed from dozens of designated sites countywide and work within assigned map areas to record observations and, when possible, conduct brief surveys with people who appear to be living in places not meant for human habitation.
How the count works and what it can — and cannot — capture
The Point-in-Time Count combines two core components: a sheltered count and an unsheltered count. The sheltered portion relies largely on administrative records from emergency shelters and transitional housing programs, while the unsheltered portion depends on field canvassing and interviews conducted outdoors and in other non-residential locations.
Because the event is a one-night census, the total is widely treated as a conservative estimate rather than a full accounting of everyone who experiences homelessness over the course of a year. Weather, visibility, individual movement, and the limits of observation-based canvassing can affect what volunteers encounter during the short window of time when teams are in the field.
Timing: The local unsheltered canvas is conducted during pre-dawn hours to increase the likelihood that people are in one location.
Coverage: San Diego County is divided into multiple subregions for reporting and planning purposes, including the city of San Diego and North County, South County, and East County areas.
Use of surveys: Short questionnaires help estimate demographics and circumstances that are not visible through observation alone.
Why the results matter for planning and funding
Point-in-Time data is used in local and federal reporting tied to homelessness response planning, including how communities evaluate needs for shelter, outreach, and housing interventions. The resulting dataset is also used to track changes over time across subpopulations such as families, veterans, and older adults.
The count is designed to help public agencies and service providers plan resources and assess trends using a standardized, annual measurement.
What the most recent published totals show
The latest published regional results available ahead of the 2026 canvass were from the January 2025 count. That tally identified at least 9,905 people experiencing homelessness across San Diego County, including 5,714 unsheltered people and 4,191 people in shelters or transitional housing. The overall total was lower than the prior year’s count of 10,605.
Officials and service providers have also highlighted ongoing concern about older adults: in 2025, a substantial share of unsheltered people counted were age 55 or older, a pattern local homelessness planners have flagged as a continuing challenge.
When to expect 2026 results
Data collected on January 29 will undergo validation and analysis before regional results are released publicly. That process typically takes weeks to months, as local partners reconcile field observations, survey responses, and sheltered program records into an unduplicated estimate.