2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Oakland, CA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Santa Barbara, is 4% more than it is in Oakland and is 23% above the National Average.
- Oakland unemployment rate is 7.7%.
- Santa Barbara unemployment rate is 4.1%.
 Oakland, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock4.1%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock0.8%1.6%
 Future Job Growth35.3%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes9.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$49,970  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$89,243$69,021
 Family Median Income$99,519  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Oakland, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock8.4%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K3.2%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock4.4%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K5.7%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock7.3%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K6.0%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock7.9%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K11.0%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock16.1%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K10.5%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock19.6%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Oakland, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance19.9%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock8.7%6.5%
 Community, social services2.6%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.3%1.2%
 Education, library6.6%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock3.3%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.4%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.7%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.9%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock8.3%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.6%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.2%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support16.8%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.7%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair6.2%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock6.7%13.1%
Reviews for Oakland    38 Reviews

I move to Oakland 20yrs ago with high hopes, loved the geography of the city, the diversity is outstanding, and the charm of the older homes is wonderful. When I  More

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Over 4 years ago

Fun place to visit. Little rough is some areas- a lot to do  More

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I moved to Oakland because of its racial diversity in the early eighties although I've seen some ups and downs in this visually beautiful city, it has never been as bad  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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