Carson's economy is based primarily on manufacturing. About half of Carson's land area is occupied by factories, petroleum refineries, and other industrial buildings and structures. Carson also has a diverse ethnic composition consisting of Latinos, Filipinos, African Americans, Khmers, and Samoans.
There were 24,648 households out of which 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.7% were married couples living together, 17.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.9% were non-families. 14.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.59 and the average family size was 3.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 28.4% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 93.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $52,284, and the median income for a family was $54,886Males had a median income of $33,579 versus $31,110 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,107. About 7.2% of families and 9.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.
Carson, California has the distinction of being the only incorporated city in the U.S. where the African-American population has a higher median income than the White population of the city. The north side of Carson is home to many affluent and professional African-Americans. The neighborhoods on the north side vary from middle-class two story homes to exclusive gated communities. The affluence of the African-American community in North Carson is based around California State University Dominguez Hills; which was established in the aftermath of the Watts Riots to address the education needs of African-Americans in South Los Angeles
Carson is also the location of the Home Depot Center, a sports complex including a soccer-specific stadium used by the Los Angeles Galaxy and, as of 2005, Chivas USA, a tennis stadium and a track and field facility. It is also used as a training ground by the U.S. national soccer team.