2026 Compare Cities Economy:
Yakima, WA vs Santa Barbara, CA

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Highlights
- Household income in Santa Barbara, is 76% more than it is in Yakima and is 23% above the National Average.
- Yakima unemployment rate is 6.1%.
- Santa Barbara unemployment rate is 4.1%.
 Yakima, WASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock4.1%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock0.8%1.6%
 Future Job Growth40.1%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes8.2%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock8.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$24,820  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$89,243$69,021
 Family Median Income$59,600  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Yakima, WASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock8.4%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K4.4%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock4.4%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K11.9%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock7.3%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K8.3%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock7.9%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K11.9%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock16.1%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K3.8%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock19.6%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Yakima, WASanta Barbara, CAUnited States
 Management, business, finance9.7%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock8.7%6.5%
 Community, social services2.1%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock1.3%1.2%
 Education, library5.9%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock3.3%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology4.5%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.7%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement1.8%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock8.3%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.5%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.2%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support18.4%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.7%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair7.1%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock6.7%13.1%
Reviews for Yakima    12 Reviews

Over 7 years ago

Overall we've enjoyed our stay in Yakima after several years and plan on being here for several more, at least. The spring and summer here are just unreal compared to  More

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Over 10 years ago

I may be relocating to Yakima, WA for a professional position at a local university. I have never lived in this part of the country as I am from the East Coast. I have  More

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Yakima is situated in the high desert, eastern elevations of the Cascade Mountain Range. Coming from the humid, eastern parts of the country, I was amazed at how  More

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Reviews for Santa Barbara    51 Reviews

I moved to Santa Barbara around 23 years ago to study at Brooks, which like most of the Santa Barbara that I knew—has been destroyed. Homelessness, drugs, gangs, high  More

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Over 5 years ago

I fell in love with Santa Barbara about thirty years ago and finally moved here a few years ago. Because of the price of homes, it is an expensive place to live. The  More

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If you like high crime, paying a $4,500 a month mortgage and crazy high taxes, this is the place for you. It’s too bad because it wasn’t always like this. When I moved  More

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