2025 Compare Cities Education:
La Mesa, CA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
- Santa Barbara spends 2.1% more per student than La Mesa.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 7.2% lower in Santa Barbara than in La Mesa. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Santa Barbara had 5.9% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to La Mesa
 La Mesa, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$16,705$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$13,161  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,862$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio22.65  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock123874573
 Students per Counselor513  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock7.2%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.3.5%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock88.0%88.9%
 Some College Educ.27.5%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.2%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.37.8%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock12.6%9.3%
 Professional Degree2.0%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock3.5%1.5%
Reviews for La Mesa    9 Reviews

The same San Diego prices and high taxes, but not the nice weather. 15 degrees hotter than the coast. Save the money and move to AZ if you like the climate in La Mesa.  More

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I now live in Wyoming but I was a third generation San Diegan, my maternal grandmother having been born on Coronado Island in 1894. If you are a new arrival to the  More

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I Need Correct Information I lived there Over 20 Years  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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