2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
San Mateo, CA vs Garden Grove, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Garden Grove or is it cheaper to live in San Mateo?
- Garden Grove is 34.0% less expensive than San Mateo.

Which city has more affordable housing, Garden Grove or San Mateo?
- Garden Grove housing costs are 51.2% less expensive than San Mateo housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in San Mateo or is Health Care more affordable in Garden Grove.
- Health related expenses are 20.4% less in Garden Grove.
 San Mateo, CAGarden Grove, CAUnited States
 Overall  Unlock164.9100
 Food & Groceries116.7  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock93.4100
 Housing537.6  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$814,300$338,100
 Utilities92  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock117.3100
 Miscellaneous161.7  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for San Mateo    12 Reviews

I have lived in San Mateo since 2013. It has seen tremendous growth, lots of new restaurants which have become progressively more high-end though there is ample  More

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I'm a native of California. I have lived in the southern part of the state and the northern part of the state for most of my life. I have spent the last 29 years in  More

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Over 15 years ago

San Mateo has a diverse mix of people, a pleasant climate, a very pleasant downtown park with lots going on, and pretty much whatever you need handy. It's not far to  More

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Reviews for Garden Grove    10 Reviews

I've lived here for over 20 years. City hasn't changed much. Being in the SoCal area, there's plenty of stuff to do around here. Like with all of SoCal, population has  More

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Over 8 years ago

So safe and boring that the police here rarely have anything better to do. At one time, I rented a room in another person's home and decided to put some aluminum foil  More

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Over 13 years ago

This is a very informative  More

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