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2024 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Ames, IA vs Santee, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Santee or is it cheaper to live in Ames?
- Santee is 76.8% more expensive than Ames.

Which city has more affordable housing, Santee or Ames?
- Santee housing costs are 164.4% more expensive than Ames housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Ames or is Health Care more affordable in Santee.
- Health related expenses are 26.3% less in Santee.
 Ames, IASantee, CAUnited States
 Overall87.6154.9100
 Food & Groceries97.3107.8100
 Health120.889.0100
 Housing88.5234.0100
 Median Home Cost$239,100$671,700$338,100
 Utilities9,860.0%11,130.0%10,000.0%
 Transportation67.2123.5100
 Miscellaneous114.1153.5100

100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Ames    12 Reviews

Over 12 years ago

Hello, I am in San Jose Ca, but am seriously thinking of moving somewhere much slower for a better quality of living. I've just turned 59, so I'm kinda preparing for  More

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Over 12 years ago

Like every other city Ames has both good and bad points. The good points are: low cost of living, very friendly people, lots of outdoor activities and quite a few events  More

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Ames enjoys a high quality of life at a very affordable cost, substantially lower than many other communities. The presence of Iowa State University, a large (28,000  More

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Reviews for Santee    10 Reviews

Over 12 years ago

I have lived in Santee for 36 years and the changes have been extensive. Traffic has been, and still is, a big problem. However, that's a problem in most CA towns and  More

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Over 12 years ago

San Diego in general is a very expensive place to live. Santee is less so but compared to the rest of the country we are way over  More

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Over 16 years ago

Santee has a great quality of life,low crime, good schools(some of the best schools east county has to offer), fairly short commute time, as it is fairly well central in  More

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ZIPS IN AMES, IOWA
50010 50014 50012
ZIPS IN SANTEE, CALIFORNIA
92071

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