Riverside is considered a Metropolis with a population of 2,084,749 and 30,350 businesses. 508 in 2018 were added to the Riverside Chamber of Commerce business directory which was more than 2017 which had 398.

The economy of Riverside employs 1,323,816 people and has an unemployment rate of 9.5%. Some of the largest industries in Riverside are Professional Services (1,611),Restaurants (911), and Personal Services & Consultants (680).