Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Barbara vs. Blacksburg Cost of Living Summary
Santa Barbara is 49.8% more expensive than Blacksburg.
- Restaurants
-
pay 40.2% more in Santa Barbara
- Groceries
-
pay 28.5% more in Santa Barbara
- Transportation
-
pay 39.6% more in Santa Barbara
- Housing
-
pay 80.2% more in Santa Barbara
- Childcare
-
pay 58.5% more in Santa Barbara
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 33.2% more in Santa Barbara
- Clothing
-
pay 68.6% more in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara vs. Blacksburg Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Barbara instead of Blacksburg, you would:
pay 40.2% more for restaurants
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.00
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$8.75
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.37
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
|
$2.42
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of restaurants
pay 28.5% more for groceries
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.55
|
$4.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.87
|
$12.68
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$3.35
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.52
|
$5.38
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.17
|
$8.38
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$2.90
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.63
|
$0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$2.50
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.25
|
$2.48
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.25
|
$1.47
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.00
|
$1.36
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of groceries
pay 39.6% more for transportation
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$3.12
|
$4.73
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass | ?? |
$52.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$25,000.00
|
$28,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.90
|
$22.78
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of transportation
pay 80.2% more for housing
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$67.64
|
$74.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,350.00
|
$2,720.83
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$963.33
|
$2,538.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$113.78
|
$166.24
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of housing
pay 58.5% more for childcare
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$871.50
|
$1,425.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,083.25
|
$37,000.00
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of childcare
pay 33.2% more for entertainment and sports
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.88
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$5.00
|
$6.14
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.50
|
$11.82
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$40.00
|
$66.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$15.00
|
$12.50
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 68.6% more for clothing
|
Blacksburg
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$31.00
|
$69.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.00
|
$40.75
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$61.67
|
$77.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$75.00
|
$143.33
|
|
Blacksburg vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: October 2026
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