2025 Compare Cities Cost of Living:
Tucson, AZ vs Santa Cruz, CA

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Highlights
Is it cheaper to live in Santa Cruz or is it cheaper to live in Tucson?
- Santa Cruz is 91.8% more expensive than Tucson.

Which city has more affordable housing, Santa Cruz or Tucson?
- Santa Cruz housing costs are 351.4% more expensive than Tucson housing costs.

Is Health Care more affordable in Tucson or is Health Care more affordable in Santa Cruz.
- Health related expenses are 27.9% more in Santa Cruz.
 Tucson, AZSanta Cruz, CAUnited States
 Overall  Unlock186.0100
 Food & Groceries95.5  Unlock100
 Health  Unlock109.2100
 Housing93.2  Unlock100
 Median Home Cost  Unlock$1,270,800$338,100
 Utilities99  Unlock100
 Transportation  Unlock110.5100
 Miscellaneous98.6  Unlock100
100 = National Average (Below 100 means cheaper than the US average. Above 100 means more expensive.)
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Reviews for Tucson    287 Reviews

My wife and I characterize ourselves as a young couple, well educated, with decent positions and we’re Tucson natives. We’ve observed our quality of life from both a  More

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Over 1 years ago

I was reading the reviews for Tucson, and after living there for 6 years, I feel the need to weigh in. There are many pros in Tucson: access to recreational areas,  More

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I spend considerable time in and around Tucson, and I've see it rapidly going "downhill" since 2020. It's definitely not the nice town I remember from when I was a  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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