The city, which is the seat of the Mexicali Municipality, has a population of 689,775, according to the 2010 census, while the Calexico–Mexicali metropolitan area is home to 1,000,000 inhabitants on both sides of the Mexico–United States border.

[5] In 1900, the U.S.-based California Development Company received permission from the government of Díaz to cut a canal through the delta's Arroyo Alamo, to link the dry basin with the Colorado River.

In 1903, the first 500 farmers arrived; by late 1904, 405 km2 (100,000 acres) of valley were irrigated, with 10,000 people settled on the land harvesting cotton, fruits, and vegetables.

[3] Led by Los Angeles Times publisher Harry Chandler, one company controlled 800,000 hectares of land in northern Baja California by 1905, and began to build the irrigation system for the Valley.

In the early 1950s, the Mexicali Valley became the biggest cotton-producing zone in the country and in the 1960s, production reached more than half a million parcels a year.

A study by Instituto Mexicano de la Competitividad has listed Mexicali as Mexico's most polluted air of large cities, with a PM10 rating of 137 for the year 2010.

"[11] Mexican government agencies in the border region have not made pollution a priority, and weak enforcement of environmental standards is considered a reason that multinationals locate factories there, along with low wages.

[12] However, a proposed concrete lining in the United States on the All-American Canal would cut off billions of leaked gallons of water, which is used to irrigate onions, alfalfa, asparagus, squash and other crops in Mexicali.

As of 2014, the government are creating a zone of exclusion, due to the alarming amount of pollutants and contamination that has permeated throughout miles around the geothermal plant of Cerro Prieto.

During winter time, Mexicali is affected by the snow storms that pass by the town of La Rumorosa located in the Sierra de Juárez, about 45 minutes west of the city, causing a decrease in temperature that lasts from two days to one week.

The city is one of Mexico's most important exporters of asparagus, broccoli, carrots, green onions, lettuce, peas, peppers, radishes and tomatoes to the world.

[3] In its beginnings Mexicali was an important center for cotton production for export, until synthetic fabrics reduced the worldwide demand for the fiber.

Currently, horticulture is the most successful agricultural activity with scallion (green onion), and asparagus being among the most important crops.

The current prospects for economic growth in Mexicali rely on in-bond and assembly plants (maquiladoras), which come due to low wages and loose worker right laws, include companies like, Selther, Daewoo Electronics, Mitsubishi, Honeywell, Paccar, Vitro, Skyworks Solutions, CareFusion, Bosch, Price Pfister, Gulfstream, United Technologies Corporation, Kenworth, Kwikset and Collins Aerospace.

The Mexican federal and Baja California state governments have given away $2 million of public money to private hands, without a referendum for the design of the project and the laying of a few streets and lamp posts that can be seen on the premises as the only work done.

[29] Mexicali also relies on tourism as a medium to generate revenue, and visitors cross by foot or by car from Calexico, United States, every day.

Tourists are mainly attracted to local taco stands, restaurants, pharmacies, bars and dance clubs.

Arizona and Nevada residents look for medical and dental services in Mexicali, since they tend to be less expensive than in the United States.

Mexico's drinking age is 18 years old (vs. 21 in the United States) which makes it a common weekend destination for many high school and college students from Southern California.

Mexicali hosts four main shopping malls, the most visited being Plaza La Cachanilla, located a mile away from the US border.

The mall hosts a variety of shops, which sell a wide array of items, ranging from cheap Mexican curios to expensive imports.

Galerias del Valle, holds a WalMart Supercenter, a twelve-screen Cinepolis movie theater, two casinos, a food court, and a large array of stores that sell many items needed for daily living.

It is among the most ethnically diverse cities in Mexico, with people from various Native American, European, African, East Asian, and Middle Eastern origins.

This song was originally recorded in 1963 by the ranchero singer Caín Corpus and written by the famous mexican composer Antonio Valdéz Herrera [es].

Mexicali also has the Baja Prog festival, a series of progressive rock concerts that take place during four consecutive days in springtime.

The Chinese immigrants came to the area as laborers for the Colorado River Land Company, an American enterprise which designed and built an extensive irrigation system in the Valley of Mexicali.

The home of the Pioneros del Valle, also a Mexican third division football team, is located in the Mexicali Valley.

In addition, Ciudad Deportiva is the location of Farmacias Sta Maria formally known as Estadio B'Air, where the Águilas de Mexicali play, competing in winter baseball's Mexican Pacific League (LMP).

There are some bus routes across the city and its urban area, where companies like Atusa Plus, Cachanilla, Amarillo y Blanco, among others, offer this service.