2025 Compare Cities Education:
Seattle, WA vs Santa Monica, CA

Change Cities
Highlights
- Santa Monica spends 13.2% less per student than Seattle.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 18.0% higher in Santa Monica than in Seattle. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Santa Monica had 1.3% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to Seattle
 Seattle, WASanta Monica, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$17,429$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$14,996  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$8,492$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio18.53  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock65654573
 Students per Counselor455  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock3.1%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.2.0%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock94.3%88.9%
 Some College Educ.13.9%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock6.1%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.65.9%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock17.6%9.3%
 Professional Degree5.3%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock4.1%1.5%
Reviews for Seattle    321 Reviews

I have lived here since 1975, I moved here from California but was born and raised in Michigan. I would have to say that I never regretted leaving Michigan and their  More

   |    Reply

Over 3 years ago

I’ve lived in Seattle for just under 7 years and while it can be a stunningly beautiful place, I am very excited to leave. I’ll start with some of the positive aspects.  More

   |    Reply

if you can afford it, Seattle is a very nice place to live and raise a family! however, it is extremely expensive and in the winter, it's rather gloomy. i love gloomy  More

   |    Reply

Start Your Review of Seattle

Reviews for Santa Monica    24 Reviews

I moved here to Santa Monica over 10 years ago from Oklahoma City. I was surprised to see that Oklahoma City was ranked higher than Santa Monica on best places. I  More

   |    Reply

I've lived in Santa Monica for over 30 years. It's a Mediterranean climate--sunny and temperate when the rest of the country is under snow! I am walking distance to  More

   |    Reply

I have lived in this city for 4 decades, and it is never been worse than it is now. It is a dangerous disgusting hell hole. Between the crime, the homeless that are not  More

   |    Reply

Start Your Review of Santa Monica


Premium Subscription
Includes Cost of Living compares for child care, utilities, transportation, health, taxes, housing for home owners vs renters, weather, insurance premiums and so much more.


The premier source for comprehensive city data for over 30 years.

© Best Places. All rights reserved.