2025 Compare Cities Education:
Cary, NC vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
- Santa Barbara spends 43.8% more per student than Cary.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 39.0% higher in Santa Barbara than in Cary. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Santa Barbara had 9.0% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to Cary
 Cary, NCSanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$16,705$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$9,531  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,862$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.11  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock123874573
 Students per Counselor300  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock7.2%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.0%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock88.0%88.9%
 Some College Educ.12.2%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.2%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.69.5%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock12.6%9.3%
 Professional Degree3.6%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock3.5%1.5%
Reviews for Cary    63 Reviews

Cary is up-and-coming “cool.” The downtown is revitalized and growing. The town takes urban planning very seriously. The home prices have definitely spiked in the last  More

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Over 8 years ago

I've lived in NY, CT, MA, and in Miami FL. Now here in Cary NC for the past 10 years. For what I want and need at this phase of my life, I really like it here! All the  More

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Over 8 years ago

As a Real Estate Agent, I consider Cary the most central location in the Triangle, it basically takes you twenty minutes to get to Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Hillsborough,   More

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Reviews for Santa Barbara    51 Reviews

I moved to Santa Barbara around 23 years ago to study at Brooks, which like most of the Santa Barbara that I knew—has been destroyed. Homelessness, drugs, gangs, high  More

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Over 4 years ago

I fell in love with Santa Barbara about thirty years ago and finally moved here a few years ago. Because of the price of homes, it is an expensive place to live. The  More

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If you like high crime, paying a $4,500 a month mortgage and crazy high taxes, this is the place for you. It’s too bad because it wasn’t always like this. When I moved  More

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