2025 Compare Cities Education:
Santa Maria, CA vs Fort Walton Beach, FL

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Highlights
- Fort Walton Beach spends 40.9% less per student than Santa Maria.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 17.6% lower in Fort Walton Beach than in Santa Maria. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Fort Walton Beach had 47.7% more residents who had graduated High School compared to Santa Maria
 Santa Maria, CAFort Walton Beach, FLUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$9,875$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$13,158  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$5,920$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio21.01  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock16174573
 Students per Counselor539  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock3.2%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.10.0%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock91.8%88.9%
 Some College Educ.20.4%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock10.3%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.13.6%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock8.2%9.3%
 Professional Degree0.8%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock0.9%1.5%
Reviews for Santa Maria    12 Reviews

Over 6 years ago

I live in Orcutt which is a town of around 35,000 on the south side of Santa Maria. Santa Maria has, as everyone has noted, the best climate in the world. It never  More

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I have lived in Santa Maria / Orcutt for several years, but it is time to leave. I have no issues with the weather. Our climate is mild and comfortable with no extremes.  More

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The weather is very mild without a huge temperature change with the seasons. The winters are chilly but not cold and the summers are warm but not hot. Of course there  More

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Reviews for Fort Walton Beach    10 Reviews

Over 3 years ago

Ive lived in Fort Walton for atleast 15yrs.Ive seen the good days(early to late 200's)and now the bad.If you move here,youd better make atleast $10,000 a month.These  More

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I would like to know if Fort Walton Beach is a better place to live rather than busy Clearwater FL. We want to re-locate to a quieter city with all the amenities of a  More

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FWB is great for its beautiful beaches and saltwater fishing. It's also easy to move around town except during rush hour (yes, we have a rush hour - but it literally  More

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