2025 Compare Cities Education:
Chicago, IL vs Costa Mesa, CA

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Highlights
- Costa Mesa spends 30.3% less per student than Chicago.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 66.1% higher in Costa Mesa than in Chicago. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Costa Mesa had 1.5% more residents who had graduated High School compared to Chicago
 Chicago, ILCosta Mesa, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$15,277$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$18,508  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$8,037$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio13.97  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock163834573
 Students per Counselor481  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock6.1%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.6.8%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock87.6%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.0%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.4%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.41.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock8.9%9.3%
 Professional Degree3.6%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.1%1.5%
Reviews for Chicago    270 Reviews

I've lived in Chicago city and later moved to suburbs when family size increased. Absolutely love this city. This is the cleanest and most beautiful among the major  More

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Chicago is probably the best value in a major city that you can find and my personal favorite city. It will become increasingly important as climate change makes the  More

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I've live on north side and south side, UIC medical center. Don't move here go to the north side. No good amenities, if you get bored with one there is no other choices.  More

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Reviews for Costa Mesa    8 Reviews

Over 15 years ago

Costa mesa has awesome shopping but is way too crowded and I have had 3 cars stolen in the past 5 years along with countless break-ins and theft. Expensive. Close to  More

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Over 16 years ago

Costa Mesa has a near perfect climate . . . plenty of sun but rarely over 100 degrees (our house doesn't even have AC). Nestled between Newport Beach and Huntington  More

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We have a good amount of low-income, medium-income, and relatively high-income  More

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