2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Santa Cruz, CA vs Palm Desert, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Palm Desert, is 30% less than it is in Santa Cruz and is 2% below the National Average.
- Santa Cruz unemployment rate is 4.5%.
- Palm Desert unemployment rate is 6.0%.
 Santa Cruz, CAPalm Desert, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock6.0%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock2.2%1.6%
 Future Job Growth33.8%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes9.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$46,720  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$67,514$69,021
 Family Median Income$145,326  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Santa Cruz, CAPalm Desert, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock11.8%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K3.6%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock8.0%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K5.9%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock8.0%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K3.8%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock8.3%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K9.2%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock14.6%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K11.5%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock11.5%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Santa Cruz, CAPalm Desert, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance17.4%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock2.8%6.5%
 Community, social services2.9%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.5%1.2%
 Education, library10.1%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock4.4%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology6.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.2%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.3%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock9.6%5.4%
 Building maintenance2.2%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock3.2%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support18.1%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.2%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair3.3%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock4.7%13.1%
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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Reviews for Palm Desert    14 Reviews

Over 4 years ago

Palm Desert, CA is full of rude people. One woman in a long sleeved pink shirt is being extremely rude and mocking people for no reason at a neighborhood Walmart in Palm  More

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Palm Desert is clean, upscale and beautiful. The views of the Santa Rosa Mountains bright blue sky and green expanses of golf course fairways, swimming pools and  More

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I made the mistake of moving here after a short vacation to be closer to family. Biggest mistake of my life! This is not the place to live if health is important to you.  More

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