Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Barbara vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary
Santa Barbara is 45.3% more expensive than Ottawa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 40.9% more in Santa Barbara
- Groceries
-
pay 36.0% more in Santa Barbara
- Transportation
-
pay 10.2% more in Santa Barbara
- Housing
-
pay 70.6% more in Santa Barbara
- Childcare
-
pay 2.1 times more in Santa Barbara
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 31.9% more in Santa Barbara
- Clothing
-
pay 19.5% more in Santa Barbara
The cost of childcare, housing, restaurants, groceries, entertainment and sports, and clothing in Santa Barbara are more expensive than in Ottawa. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Barbara instead of Ottawa, you would:
pay 40.9% more for restaurants
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.99
CA$25.16
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.01
CA$15.40
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CA$2.80
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.56
CA$2.18
|
$2.42
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of restaurants
pay 36.0% more for groceries
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
CA$3.82
|
$4.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
CA$8.18
|
$12.68
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.65
CA$12.10
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
CA$4.92
|
$5.38
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.74
CA$8.03
|
$8.38
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.91
CA$2.67
|
$2.90
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.60
CA$0.84
|
$0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
CA$2.28
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.67
CA$2.33
|
$2.48
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.11
CA$1.55
|
$1.47
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.46
CA$2.04
|
$1.36
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of groceries
pay 10.2% more for transportation
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.05
CA$5.66
|
$4.73
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$97.12
CA$135.85
|
$52.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,444.83
CA$34,192.21
|
$28,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.82
CA$20.73
|
$22.78
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of transportation
pay 70.6% more for housing
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.93
CA$69.84
|
$74.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,452.55
CA$2,031.76
|
$2,720.83
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,228.71
CA$1,718.66
|
$2,538.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.93
CA$166.35
|
$166.24
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of housing
pay 2.1 times more for childcare
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$788.18
CA$1,102.46
|
$1,425.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,753.32
CA$22,034.96
|
$37,000.00
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of childcare
pay 31.9% more for entertainment and sports
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.76
CA$8.05
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.74
CA$5.24
|
$6.14
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.95
CA$18.11
|
$11.82
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.60
CA$62.39
|
$66.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.79
CA$15.09
|
$12.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 19.5% more for clothing
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.82
CA$73.89
|
$69.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.91
CA$54.43
|
$40.75
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.10
CA$121.83
|
$77.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.91
CA$129.96
|
$143.33
|
|
Ottawa 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: December 2025
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