2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Novato, CA vs Merced, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Merced or is it cheaper to live in Novato?
- Merced is 52.6% less expensive than Novato.

Which city has more affordable housing, Merced or Novato?
- Merced housing costs are 68.6% less expensive than Novato housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Novato or is Health Care more affordable in Merced.
- Health related expenses are 10.2% more in Merced.
 Novato, CAMerced, CAUnited States
 Overall  Unlock109.1100
 Food & Groceries111.9  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock121.3100
 Housing351.3  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$373,000$338,100
 Utilities95  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock101.1100
 Miscellaneous164.6  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Novato    9 Reviews

Lush hills, hiking trails, and easy access to both wine country and San Francisco. We love it here.  More

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Over 10 years ago

Novato is a family oriented community located about 20 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge. The quality of life is excellent here assuming your job pays you enough to  More

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Over 11 years ago

We recently moved to a secluded neighborhood in Novato after 25 years in central Marin. While there are fewer restaurants and galleries, we are very pleased with our  More

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Reviews for Merced    44 Reviews

Merced is totally slept on - you want a little bit of everything CA has to offer, at a fraction of the price of other CA cities? Merced is the place to go. The town  More

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Over 5 years ago

Good place to live. More affordable than most of california. The city is growing and there is alot of business and growth here. Moved from the Bay area years ago and  More

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Great place to live. Lots of progress and changes coming to the city. Great place to raise a family. UC Merced is expanding and businesses are investing. Downtown is  More

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