2026 Compare Cities Economy:
San Marcos, CA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Santa Barbara, is 2% less than it is in San Marcos and is 23% above the National Average.
- San Marcos unemployment rate is 5.9%.
- Santa Barbara unemployment rate is 4.1%.
 San Marcos, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock4.1%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock0.8%1.6%
 Future Job Growth38.4%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes7.8%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$39,122  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$89,243$69,021
 Family Median Income$110,202  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 San Marcos, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock8.4%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K2.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock4.4%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K7.2%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock7.3%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K4.1%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock7.9%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K11.6%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock16.1%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K13.6%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock19.6%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 San Marcos, CASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance20.2%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock8.7%6.5%
 Community, social services1.3%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.3%1.2%
 Education, library5.5%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock3.3%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.6%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.7%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.6%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock8.3%5.4%
 Building maintenance5.1%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.2%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support20.1%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.7%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair7.3%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock6.7%13.1%
Reviews for San Marcos    5 Reviews

Just an amazing place to live. I have lived in 7 states and almost countless cities. Sam Marcos is one of the best. This is literally the longest place I have lived  More

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Over 16 years ago

Is this area to expensive for the average income retired  More

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Over 19 years ago

Beautiful Mediterranean climate with bright sunshine and ocean breazes. City is just 15 minutes away from the  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 5 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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