Merced, known as the "Gateway to Yosemite", is less than two hours by car from Yosemite National Park to the east and to the west is Monterey Bay, the Pacific Ocean, and miles of beaches. The community is served by the rail passenger service Amtrak, a major airline through Merced Municipal Airport, and three bus lines.
In 2005, the city became home to the tenth University of California campus, University of California, Merced (UCM), the first research university built in the U.S. in the 21st century.
As of the census of 2000, there were 63,893 people, 20,435 households, and 14,631 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,216.7 people per square mile (1,242.2/km²). There were 21,532 housing units at an average density of 1,084.0/sq mi (418.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 52.40% White, 6.33% African American, 1.28% Native American, 12.37% Asian (mostly Hmong), 0.21% Pacific Islander, 23.18% from other races, and 5.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 41.36% of the population.
There were 20,435 households out of which 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.2% were married couples living together, 18.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.06 and the average family size was 3.62.
In the city the population was spread out with 34.7% under the age of 18, 11.4% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,429, and the median income for a family was $32,470. Males had a median income of $31,725 versus $24,492 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,115. About 22.4% of families and 27.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 36.9% of those under age 18 and 10.1% of those age 65 or over.
Merced is home to one of the largest concentrations of Laotian Hmong immigrants in the United States, which likely make up the "Asian" and "Other" categories in the 2000 census listed above. It has been reported that by the mid-nineties, one in five residents of Merced was Hmong. Despite many struggles with integration and some local xenophobia, because of the exceptionally high concentration, the Hmong community in Merced has managed to retain a great deal of their traditional culture
In the 2007 version of the book "Cities Ranked & Rated" by authors Bert Sperling and Peter Sander, Merced has been ranked 370th of 373 cities nationwide. The factors that determined the ranking of the cities within the book include the quality of life, cost of living in the area, availability and type of jobs, education, health care, climate, crime, commute times, and leisure activities. However, the entry in the book also states that the town may not stay in this place for long, since the authors stated that "Merced is definitely on an upward path and offers potential not found in other Valley towns. This potential is clearly not shown in today's numbers."