Known as the "City of Eternal Sunshine", Coachella is largely a rural, agricultural, family-oriented community in the desert and one of the state's fastest growing cities in the late 20th century. When it first incorporated back in 1946, it had 1,000 residents, but the population was 22,724 at the 2000 census.
The eastern half of the Coachella valley is below sea level, and the area's average elevation is 68 feet (35 m) below sea level. The Salton Sea, a saltwater lake located about 10 miles (16 km) South of Coachella, lies 227 feet (69 m) below sea level.
The city also lends its name to the Coachella grapefruit; the town's stretch of State Route 111 is named Grapefruit Boulevard in its honor. Harrison Street or State Route 86 is declared historic U.S. Route 99, the major throughfare that connects with Interstate 10 a few miles north of town.
As of the census of 2000, there were 22,724 people, 4,807 households, and 4,480 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,091.4 people per square mile (421.4/km²). There were 5,024 housing units at an average density of 241.3/sq mi (93.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 38.77% White, 0.45% Black or African American, 0.84% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 56.57% from other races, and 3.03% from two or more races. 97.39% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race were 97.39% of the population.
There were 4,807 households,and many more of which 65.9% had children under the age of 18, 66.5% were married couples living together, 19.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 6.8% were non-families. 5.3% of all households were individuals living alone, and 2.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 4.72 and the average family size was 4.80.
In the city the population was spread out with 40.8% under the age of 18, 12.7% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 12.8% from 45 to 64, and 5.0% 65 years or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 100.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $28,590, and the median income for a family was $28,320. Males had a median income of $23,044, compared to $15,550 for females. The per capita income for the city was $7,416. About 29.1% of families and 28.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 35.3% of those under age 18 and 25.7% of those 65 or over.