Cost of living in Santa Clara research summary. The cost of living index is set to 100 for the average place in the United States. A cost of living index above 100 means Santa Clara is expensive. An index value below 100 means the city is a relatively cheap place to live.
On a city-by-city basis in California, home prices and rent have the biggest impact on the cost of living. Here are the key takeaways based on Saturday Night Science:
The cost of living index in Santa Clara is 192, with 100 being the average.
The cost of living index in Santa Clara is 1.9x higher than the national average.
Santa Clara ranks as the #559 cheapest in California out of 635.
Santa Clara ranks as the #6,284 cheapest out of 6,412 in the US.
The median home value in Santa Clara is $1,199,500.
The median income in Santa Clara is $150,244.
According to the most recent data on the cost of living, Santa Clara has an overall cost of living index of 192, which is 1.9x higher than the national index of 100.
Compared to California, Santa Clara has a cost of living index that's 1.4x higher than California's index of 139.
The standard of living in Santa Clara ranks as #559 most affordable out of the 635 places we measured in California. By definition, that implies Santa Clara ranks as the #76 most expensive place in the Golden State.
For more reading on life in Santa Clara, check out:
Six factors go into calculating the cost of living index in Santa Clara. Here is how it fairs on each of the criteria:
The Services index in Santa Clara is 119.
The Groceries index in Santa Clara is 133.
The Health index in Santa Clara is 123.
The Housing index in Santa Clara is 340.
The Transportation index in Santa Clara is 144.
The Utilities index in Santa Clara is 138.
Living Expense | Santa Clara | California | National Average | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Overall | 192 | 139 | 100 | |
Services | 119 | 110 | 100 | |
Groceries | 133 | 112 | 100 | |
Health | 123 | 109 | 100 | |
Housing | 340 | 204 | 100 | |
Transportation | 144 | 126 | 100 | |
Utilities | 138 | 124 | 100 |
Housing swings affordability the most between places in California, so we broke down housing costs into more detail. Home and income data comes from the most recent US Census ACS 2017-2021. The key points are:
The Median Home Value in Santa Clara is $1,199,500.
The Median Rent in Santa Clara is $2,652.
The Median Income in Santa Clara is $150,244.
The Home Value To Income in Santa Clara is 8.0x.
The Rent To Monthly Income in Santa Clara is 0.21x.
Statistic | Santa Clara | California | United States |
---|---|---|---|
Median Home Value | $1,199,500 | $573,200 | $244,900 |
Median Rent | $2,652 | $1,698 | $1,163 |
Median Income | $150,244 | $84,097 | $69,021 |
Home Value To Income | 8.0x | 6.8x | 3.5x |
Rent To Monthly Income | 0.21x | 0.24x | 0.2x |
Item | Santa Clara | California |
---|---|---|
Shampoo | $1.39 | $1.06 |
Movie | $13.23 | $10.68 |
Bowling | $19.56 | $14.67 |
Haircut | $19.39 | $18.62 |
Beauty Salon | $67.86 | $39.05 |
Item | Santa Clara | California |
---|---|---|
Ground Beef | $3.73 | $4.22 |
Fried Chicken | $1.89 | $1.39 |
Milk | $2.87 | $2.05 |
Potatoes | $3.35 | $3.29 |
Pizza | $12.66 | $10.62 |
Beer | $10.57 | $9.38 |
Toothpaste | $3.07 | $2.34 |
Item | Santa Clara | California |
---|---|---|
Optometrist | $136.92 | $108.57 |
Doctor | $146.83 | $116.17 |
Dentist | $133.38 | $99.13 |
Item | Santa Clara | California |
---|---|---|
Gasoline | $3.38 | $2.22 |
Tire Balancing | $62.03 | $50.07 |
Item | Santa Clara | California |
---|---|---|
All Electricity | $269.4 | $167.67 |
Phone | $187.26 | $175.64 |
The cost of living varies in the cities and towns around Santa Clara. Here's a quick look at the cost of living in the most populous nearby places:
Sunnyvale, CA has a cost of living index of 204, 1.1x Santa Clara.
Mountain View, CA has a cost of living index of 220, 1.1x Santa Clara.
Milpitas, CA has a cost of living index of 181, 0.9x Santa Clara.
City | Population | Cost Of Living | Vs. Santa Clara |
---|---|---|---|
Sunnyvale, CA | 155,550 | 204 | 1.1x |
Mountain View, CA | 82,409 | 220 | 1.1x |
Milpitas, CA | 79,593 | 181 | 0.9x |
Cupertino, CA | 60,681 | 252 | 1.3x |
Campbell, CA | 43,954 | 199 | 1.0x |
Menlo Park, CA | 33,677 | 289 | 1.5x |
Los Altos, CA | 31,562 | 340 | 1.8x |
Saratoga, CA | 31,194 | 310 | 1.6x |
San Carlos, CA | 30,754 | 237 | 1.2x |
North Fair Oaks, CA | 14,360 | 179 | 0.9x |