2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Federal Way, WA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Santa Barbara or is it cheaper to live in Federal Way?
- Santa Barbara is 2.2% less expensive than Federal Way.

Which city has more affordable housing, Santa Barbara or Federal Way?
- Santa Barbara housing costs are 169.8% more expensive than Federal Way housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Federal Way or is Health Care more affordable in Santa Barbara.
- Health related expenses are 28.3% more in Santa Barbara.
 Federal Way, WASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Overall  Unlock154.7100
 Food & Groceries101.5  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock113.2100
 Housing176.7  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$1,525,500$338,100
 Utilities71  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock97.0100
 Miscellaneous150.6  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Federal Way    14 Reviews

Over 6 years ago

A suburb of The Emerald City (Seattle, WA), Federal Way has become yet another go-to place for affluent travelers and transplants from states all over the nation. The  More

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I want to move my family to austin i havent bin there but we want some ware housing is affortable i have four boys age 6,3,2 and a baby of 2 months and ware theres jobs  More

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I have lived in Brooklyn NY, West Palm Beach & Port St Lucie, FL and now Federal Way, WA. While the cost of living here is higher than Florida, it is definitely lower  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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