Mountain Center is a small unincorporated community and census-designated place located in the San Jacinto Mountains in western Riverside County, California. It sits at the junction of State Route 74 and State Route 243, within the San Bernardino National Forest. The community lies just north of Lake Hemet and south of Idyllwild, at an elevation of 4,518 feet. Though unincorporated, it has its own post office with ZIP code 92561. The total area is about 1.9 square miles, with nearly all of it being land.
As of the 2020 U.S. Census, Mountain Center had a population of 66 residents, a small increase from 63 in 2010. The community is mostly White (77%), with small percentages of Native American and Asian residents, and 20% identifying as two or more races. About 14% of the population is Hispanic or Latino. There were 39 households, most being married couples, with few families having children. The average household size was 1.69, showing a largely adult population with many single-person homes. The area still shows visible marks from past wildfires such as the Mountain Fire and the Cranston Fire.
