Welcome to Sanibel ...

The coastal city of Sanibel is located in Lee County<1>.

While we don't have a date for the founding of Sanibel, you might consider that their post office opened in 1895.

From the Census Estimates for 2019, Sanibel has a population of 7,413 people<2> (see below for details).

Sanibel is near sea level<3>.

Time Zone: Sanibel lies in the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT) and observes daylight saving time

Area Code for Sanibel: 239

The ZIP code for Sanibel: 33957<4>

Population Details ...

Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Sanibel had an population of 7,413 people. This is an increase of 14.59% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 22.25% since the 2000 Census).

At the time of the 2010 Census, Sanibel had a population of 6,469 people. This makes Sanibel the county's 4th most populous community.

The population of Sanibel represents 0.03% of the population of Florida (which has 18,801,310 people), making it the state's 190th most populous community.

With a 2010 count of 6,469 people, the population of Sanibel increased 6.68% from the 2000 Census (with a count of 6,064 people).

More information can be found on the Census Page for Sanibel.

Websites for Sanibel ...

Official Website: www.mysanibel.com/

Chamber of Commerce: www.iloveleecounty.com/

Communities near Sanibel ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Sanibel.

Cape Coral
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Cape Coral
- Cape Coral is located in Lee County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 200,972 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Cape Coral <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Cape Coral
- From Sanibel to Cape Coral
Fort Myers
(16 miles [25.7 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Myers
- Fort Myers is located in Lee County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 91,086 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fort Myers <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Fort Myers
- From Sanibel to Fort Myers
Bonita Springs
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the southeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Bonita Springs
- Bonita Springs is located in Lee County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 60,830 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Bonita Springs <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Bonita Springs
- From Sanibel to Bonita Springs
Estero
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Estero
- Estero is located in Lee County
- Estero has also been known as:
- Estero Village
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Estero <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Estero
- From Sanibel to Estero
Saint James City
(4 miles [6.4 km] to the northwest)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint James City
- Saint James City is located in Lee County
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint James City <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Saint James City
- From Sanibel to Saint James City
Fort Myers Beach
(5 miles [8 km] to the east)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fort Myers Beach
- Fort Myers Beach is located in Lee County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 7,117 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fort Myers Beach <5>
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Fort Myers Beach
- From Sanibel to Fort Myers Beach
Shell Point Village
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Shell Point Village have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Shell Point Village
- Shell Point Village is located in Lee County
Truckland ‑ Historic
(5 miles [8 km] to the northeast)
- Note: We haven't been able to verify our GPS coordinates for Truckland. Although the coordinates have been estimated, they should be in the vicinity.<7>
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Truckland
- Truckland is located in Lee County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Truckland
- From Sanibel to Truckland
Iona
(6 miles [9.7 km] to the northeast)
- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Iona have been provided by the GNIS.<6> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Iona
- Iona is located in Lee County
Harlem Heights
(7 miles [11.3 km] to the northeast)
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Harlem Heights
- Harlem Heights is located in Lee County
- Google driving directions:
- From your current location to Harlem Heights
- From Sanibel to Harlem Heights

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Sanibel. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Sanibel.

Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Sanibel. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Sanibel.

We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Sanibel. See our Newspapers Page for Sanibel.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Sanibel ...

Looking for more information about Sanibel? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Sanibel, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Sanibel.

Adding Sanibel to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Sanibel in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Sanibel was in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).

We also found Sanibel on a map titled Shell Oil Road Map for Florida (1956).

For more details, see References and Mentions for Sanibel.

Footnotes ...

<1>	If you're interested in how the shape of Florida's counties, including Lee, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
<2>	Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Sanibel.
<3>	The elevation is an estimate for the area around Sanibel - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<4>	ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Sanibel). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Sanibel or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).
<5>	While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<6>	The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<7>	An 'estimated' location is one where we have been given GPS coordinates, but are unable to verify the accuracy of those coordinates. That said, we have some confidence that we have placed the marker near the actual location. A typical reason for being unable to verify a location is that it might be on private property or maybe historic and gone without an obvious trace.