Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Maria vs. Ottawa Cost of Living Summary
Santa Maria is 29.1% more expensive than Ottawa.
- Restaurants
-
pay 29.0% more in Santa Maria
- Groceries
-
pay 4.8% more in Santa Maria
- Transportation
-
pay 23.2% more in Santa Maria
- Housing
-
pay 43.9% more in Santa Maria
- Childcare
-
pay 97.5% more in Santa Maria
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 9.0% more in Santa Maria
- Clothing
-
pay 3.7% less in Santa Maria
The cost of childcare, housing, restaurants, transportation, entertainment and sports, and groceries in Santa Maria are more expensive than in Ottawa. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in Santa Maria.
Santa Maria vs. Ottawa Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Maria instead of Ottawa, you would:
pay 29.0% more for restaurants
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.99
CA$24.78
|
$23.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$11.01
CA$15.17
|
$13.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
CA$2.76
|
$2.50
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.56
CA$2.15
|
$2.26
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of restaurants
pay 4.8% more for groceries
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.73
CA$3.76
|
$3.47
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
CA$8.06
|
$6.22
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$8.65
CA$11.92
|
$4.71
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.52
CA$4.85
|
$3.50
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$5.74
CA$7.91
|
$6.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.91
CA$2.63
|
$1.70
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.60
CA$0.83
|
$0.76
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.63
CA$2.25
|
$1.79
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.67
CA$2.30
|
$2.05
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.11
CA$1.52
|
$1.38
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.46
CA$2.01
|
$1.22
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of groceries
pay 23.2% more for transportation
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.05
CA$5.58
|
$4.62
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$97.12
CA$133.83
|
?? | |
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$24,444.83
CA$33,683.76
|
$32,727.50
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$14.82
CA$20.42
|
$18.01
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of transportation
pay 43.9% more for housing
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.93
CA$68.80
|
$74.01
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,452.55
CA$2,001.55
|
$2,241.33
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,228.71
CA$1,693.10
|
$2,050.00
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$118.93
CA$163.88
|
$126.18
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of housing
pay 97.5% more for childcare
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$788.18
CA$1,086.07
|
$1,762.50
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$15,753.32
CA$21,707.29
|
$27,000.00
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of childcare
pay 9.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.76
CA$7.93
|
$6.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.74
CA$5.16
|
$4.83
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$12.95
CA$17.84
|
$11.50
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$44.60
CA$61.46
|
$25.00
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$10.79
CA$14.87
|
$18.00
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 3.7% less for clothing
|
Ottawa
|
Santa Maria
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$52.82
CA$72.79
|
$60.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$38.91
CA$53.62
|
$39.99
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$87.10
CA$120.02
|
$72.50
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$92.91
CA$128.02
|
$79.50
|
|
Ottawa vs. Santa Maria - 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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