2025 Compare Cities Economy:
San Mateo, CA vs Santa Cruz, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Santa Cruz, is 28% less than it is in San Mateo and is 28% above the National Average.
- San Mateo unemployment rate is 4.4%.
- Santa Cruz unemployment rate is 4.5%.
 San Mateo, CASanta Cruz, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock4.5%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock1.8%1.6%
 Future Job Growth38.7%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes9.0%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$71,429  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$96,217$69,021
 Family Median Income$161,686  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 San Mateo, CASanta Cruz, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock10.7%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K1.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock7.9%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K4.8%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock4.6%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K3.6%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock6.1%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K9.4%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock16.1%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K12.5%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock20.7%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 San Mateo, CASanta Cruz, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance25.5%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock12.2%6.5%
 Community, social services0.9%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock0.7%1.2%
 Education, library5.1%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock4.3%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology5.2%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock1.9%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement0.9%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock9.9%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.2%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.3%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support17.2%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.9%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair5.4%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock5.2%13.1%
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 Santa Cruz    44 Reviews

I lived in the Santa Cruz area for 20 years. UCSC alum. Our kids were born there. There are wonderful things about Santa Cruz, but also many serious problems that we  More

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Over 5 years ago

I have been here for four generations! My kids are the fifth. I guess that should tell you how wonderful it is here, at least for us. It's so cool to have world class  More

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I was born over the hill in San Jose area, and as a kid I loved coming over to the boardwalk. Santa Cruz has always been and always will be a town of diversity,  More

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