A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Pasadena$6,850/mo

Typical home $1.19M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.63% · or rent about $2,265/mo · Housing →

Santa Barbara$10,290/mo

Typical home $1.82M (Zillow) · tax rate 0.48% · or rent about $2,413/mo · Housing →

The difference: $3,450 a month, about $41,400 a year, between Santa Barbara and Pasadena.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Pasadena places higher on 17 of 26 CA lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every California ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety

DPasadenaSafer than 13% of U.S. towns C−Santa BarbaraSafer than 15% of U.S. towns

Schools

B+PasadenaBetter than 67% of districts in the state CSanta BarbaraBetter than 27% of districts in the state

Health

A−PasadenaHealthier than 83% of U.S. towns A−Santa BarbaraHealthier than 79% of U.S. towns

17Pasadena

8Santa Barbara

Lists won, of 26 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Best schoolsSchools · 574 towns #150#519 Highest graduation rateSchools · 720 towns #599#211 Lowest depressionHealth · 844 towns #99#420 Shortest commuteGetting around · 843 towns #352#38 Most walkableOutdoors · 841 towns #252#560 Most trailsOutdoors · 677 towns #199#410 Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 844 towns #245#76 Most library borrowingLibraries · 117 towns #62#40

Left end = #1 in California. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Pasadena’s rankings →

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

PasadenaSanta Barbara

Snow a year0″0″

January low—47°F

July high—76°F

Growing season (days)—365d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)91st 97th

Outdoors & history

PasadenaSanta Barbara

Trails40 mi 34 mi

Conserved land13.5%7.2%

Settled1886 1847

National Register places124 19

Archive photos36 18

Famous people born here—46

Community

PasadenaSanta Barbara

Library hours a week54 hrs 38 hrs

Colleges in town9 6

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined1 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

92 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

PasadenaCA Santa BarbaraCA

Pasadena ↔ Santa Barbara92 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs California average

PasadenaSanta Barbara

People

Population 136,969Highest 87,779Lowest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +1.2%Highest CA: +6.1% +0.3%Lowest CA: +6.1%

Median age 40.1±0.6Highest 6% above CA 39.7±1.1Lowest 5% above CA

Pasadena and Santa Barbara are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 16.7%±0.9Lowest CA: 22% 17.7%±1.2Highest CA: 22%

Santa Barbara and Pasadena are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 17.4%±0.8Lowest CA: 15.7% 20.6%±1.1Highest CA: 15.7%

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 56.1%Highest CA: 37.1% 51.9%Lowest CA: 37.1%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 7.7%±0.6Lowest CA: 7.6% 8.7%±1Highest CA: 7.6%

Santa Barbara and Pasadena are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $105,192±$3kLowest 6% above CA $106,182±$6kHighest 7% above CA

Santa Barbara and Pasadena are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $1,093,300±$25kLowest 49% above CA $1,570,800±$59kHighest 114% above CA

Rentmedian gross, monthly $2,265±$38Lowest 11% above CA $2,413±$62Highest 19% above CA

Property taxmedian, yearly $6,843Lowest 34% above CA $7,498Highest 46% above CA

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 52.9%±2.9Lowest CA: 55.3% 55.7%±3.6Highest CA: 55.3%

Santa Barbara and Pasadena are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Below poverty line 13.3%Lowest CA: 12% 14%Highest CA: 12%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 42.5%Highest CA: 55.9% 39.9%Lowest CA: 55.9%

Typical home builtmedian year 1961Lowest 15 yrs older than CA 1965Highest 11 yrs older than CA

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 27 minHighest 6% below CA 17 minLowest 40% below CA

Work from home 27.6%±1.5Highest CA: 17.2% 18.9%±1.8Lowest CA: 17.2%

Work in townworking residents 20.3%Lowest 43.3%Highest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.8 miHighest 5.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.76Highest 1.43Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Los Angeles (29%)Goleta (12%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Santa BarbaraFew work in Pasadena

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 13.5%Highest 7.2%Lowest

Trailsmapped miles 39.8 miHighest 33.7 miLowest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.7 miHighest 0.9 miLowest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 31Lowest 47Highest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 98.2Highest 48.9Lowest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #150 of 574 in CA #519 of 574 in CA

School district Learning Works District · Pasadena Rosebud Academy DistrictSanta Barbara Unified · Hope Elementary

High school in town Options For Youth - Duarte IncSanta Barbara Senior High

Students per teacherat that high school 28.0Highest 19.5Lowest

California average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Pasadena neighborsTown Square →

T Weaver · 4d

Living in Pasadena

1 neighbor in Pasadena can answer.

Santa Barbara neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Santa Barbara’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Pasadena and Santa Barbara

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Bordering Pasadena

+ Compare

La Cañada Flintridge19,935 people · $2M homes

+ Compare

Altadena41,705 people · $1.12M homes

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Los Angeles3,857,263 people · $921K homes

+ Compare

San Marino12,216 people · $2M homes

Towns like Pasadena

+ Compare

Burbank104,546 people · $1.09M homes

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San Mateo103,105 people · $1.62M homes

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Glendale190,748 people · $1.1M homes

+ Compare

Costa Mesa110,330 people · $1.12M homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Pasadena vs Santa Barbara

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs $3,450 more a month in Santa Barbara

Pasadena places higher on 17 of 26 CA lists

What daily life feels like in each

92 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Living in Pasadena

Set another town beside Pasadena and Santa Barbara

Bordering Pasadena

Towns like Pasadena

Post to Pasadena

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