State numbers show that in 2024, more than 350,000 people accessed homeless services through local agencies. About 230,000 were people in adults-only households, and 118,100 in families with kids. Over 100,000 of those who accessed services were in Los Angeles County. That number is dynamic, and much higher than the one-night snapshot, because someone may have been homeless at the start of the year, but housed by the end — or vice versa.

But it also excludes some individuals who never interacted with homeless providers, and survivors of domestic violence who are omitted for safety purposes, according to Ali Sutton, the state deputy secretary for homelessness.