Best Places for Business and Careers 2019

Santa Maria, CA

Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
the place image

Santa Maria, CA

Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
gross metro product
$32.2B
population
446.5K
median household income
$73,833
median home price
$684,000
cost of living
37% above nat'l avg
college attainment
35.2%
net migration
-180 (year: 2018)
unemployment
4%
major industries
Education, Tourism, Technology
job growth
1.1% (year: 2018)
As of October 2019
The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro is part of the California Central Coast and the Tech Coast, which gets its name from the heavy information technology presence in Southern California. Santa Barbara County is a popular tourist and resort destination thanks to the beautiful weather and numerous wineries. The county got additional attention after the release of the movie Sideways in 2004, which highlighted the Pinot noir wines in the area. UC Santa Barbara and Vandenberg Airforce Base are two of the largest employers in the
area.
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On forbes lists
#194
In Cost of Doing Business
#138
In Job Growth
#64
In Education
By The Numbers
EmploymentHousingEducationQuality of Life
Job Growth
1.1% (year: 2018)
Projected Annual Job Growth
1.2%
Unemployment
4%
Median Household Income
$73,833
Household Income Growth
3.4%
High-Tech Employment
2.7%
  • Data is for the metro area
  • Sources: Moody's Analytics; Sperling's BestPlaces; U.S. Census.
  • Numbers as of October 2019


  • a - Value of 100 means that a family with the median income has exactly enough income to qualify for a typical mortgage on a median-priced single-family home. An index above 100 signifies that the family has surplus income.
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