2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
San Francisco, CA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Santa Barbara or is it cheaper to live in San Francisco?
- Santa Barbara is 37.0% less expensive than San Francisco.

Which city has more affordable housing, Santa Barbara or San Francisco?
- Santa Barbara housing costs are 5.5% less expensive than San Francisco housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in San Francisco or is Health Care more affordable in Santa Barbara.
- Health related expenses are 1.5% less in Santa Barbara.
 San Francisco, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Overall  Unlock154.7100
 Food & Groceries116.6  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock113.2100
 Housing504.4  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$1,525,500$338,100
 Utilities98  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock97.0100
 Miscellaneous162.1  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for San Francisco    149 Reviews

from a single guy's perspective. let's start this review from 2017. I moved here to be near to my sister who also relocated, and also to attend Cal State East Bay in  More

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I've lived in San Francisco for ten years. I thought I would write a balanced review for people looking to move here. My family is from places like Boise, Atlanta,  More

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I've lived in San Francisco for ten years. I thought I would write a balanced review for people looking to move here. My family is from places like Boise, Atlanta,  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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