Cost of living comparison
compared to
Santa Barbara vs. Sydney Cost of Living Summary
Santa Barbara is 18.2% more expensive than Sydney.
- Restaurants
-
pay 32.4% more in Santa Barbara
- Groceries
-
pay 44.7% more in Santa Barbara
- Transportation
-
pay 16.7% less in Santa Barbara
- Housing
-
pay 37.1% more in Santa Barbara
- Childcare
-
pay 35.5% more in Santa Barbara
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 6.5% more in Santa Barbara
- Clothing
-
pay 12.1% less in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara vs. Sydney Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Santa Barbara instead of Sydney, you would:
pay 32.4% more for restaurants
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.35
A$23.57
|
$25.00
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.81
A$14.14
|
$15.00
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.60
A$3.74
|
$2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
A$2.88
|
$2.42
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of restaurants
pay 44.7% more for groceries
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.63
A$3.79
|
$4.40
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.92
A$7.09
|
$12.68
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.66
A$9.60
|
$5.25
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$5.21
A$7.51
|
$5.38
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.86
A$5.56
|
$8.38
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.46
A$2.10
|
$2.90
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.25
A$1.80
|
$0.74
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.39
A$2.00
|
$1.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$2.07
A$2.99
|
$2.48
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.10
A$1.58
|
$1.47
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$1.06
A$1.52
|
$1.36
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of groceries
pay 16.7% less for transportation
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$4.66
A$6.71
|
$4.73
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$142.21
A$204.95
|
$52.00
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$29,060.36
A$41,879.75
|
$28,500.00
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$23.55
A$33.94
|
$22.78
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of transportation
pay 37.1% more for housing
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$52.18
A$75.20
|
$74.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$2,157.42
A$3,109.12
|
$2,720.83
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,515.46
A$2,183.98
|
$2,538.89
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$147.91
A$213.16
|
$166.24
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of housing
pay 35.5% more for childcare
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$2,079.13
A$2,996.29
|
$1,425.00
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$18,278.49
A$26,341.69
|
$37,000.00
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of childcare
pay 6.5% more for entertainment and sports
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.54
A$9.43
|
$8.00
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.48
A$5.02
|
$6.14
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$32.71
A$47.14
|
$11.82
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$66.50
A$95.83
|
$66.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.74
A$19.80
|
$12.50
|
|
Sydney vs. Santa Barbara - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 12.1% less for clothing
|
Sydney
|
Santa Barbara
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$75.03
A$108.13
|
$69.00
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$61.01
A$87.92
|
$40.75
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$101.79
A$146.69
|
$77.00
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$122.15
A$176.04
|
$143.33
|
|
Sydney 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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