Population
Santa Monica
91,535
Berkeley
120,223
Median Income
Santa Monica
$109,739
Berkeley
$108,558
Home Value
Santa Monica
$1,810,200
Berkeley
$1,351,100
Rent
Santa Monica
$2,338
Berkeley
$2,127
Crime Rate
Santa Monica
7.82
Berkeley
6.40
Cost of Living
Santa Monica
241.2
Berkeley
233.6
Avg Temp
Santa Monica
N/A
Berkeley
N/A
Unemployment
Santa Monica
6.1%
Berkeley
6.0%
How Similar Are Santa Monica & Berkeley?
Berkeley is Santa Monica's #4 most similar city
4 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Santa Monica
91,535
Berkeley
120,223
Berkeley has a 24% larger population than Santa Monica.
Violent Crime
Santa Monica
7.82
Berkeley
6.40
Santa Monica has a 18% higher violent crime than Berkeley.
Property Crime
Santa Monica
47.90
Berkeley
52.29
Both cities have similar property crime — just a 8% difference.
Political Leaning
Santa Monica
31.9%
Berkeley
21.0%
Both cities lean Democratic, but Santa Monica has a stronger Democratic lean (34% difference).
Unemployment
Santa Monica
6.1%
Berkeley
6.0%
Both cities have similar unemployment — just a 1% difference.
Median Income
Santa Monica
$109,739
Berkeley
$108,558
Both cities have similar median income — just a 1% difference.
Home Values
Santa Monica
$1,810,200
Berkeley
$1,351,100
Santa Monica has a 25% higher home values than Berkeley.
Education
Santa Monica
55.4%
Berkeley
47.7%
Santa Monica has a 14% higher education than Berkeley.
Demographics
Santa Monica
66.9%
Berkeley
54.8%
Santa Monica has a 18% higher demographics than Berkeley.
Cost of Living
Santa Monica
241.2
Berkeley
233.6
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 3% difference.
4 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Santa Monica and Berkeley share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Santa Monica
0
Berkeley
Santa Monica leads in 4 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Berkeley leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDBerkeley scores 121.0 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 167.8 in Santa Monica. Santa Monica has a fair market rent (1br) of $2,085 vs $2,385 in Berkeley (13% lower). Santa Monica has a fair market rent (2br) of $2,601 vs $2,912 in Berkeley (11% lower).
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Berkeley leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBerkeley has a single-family homes of 44.0% compared to 22.6% in Santa Monica. Santa Monica has a median home value of $1,810,200 vs $1,351,100 in Berkeley (34% higher). Berkeley has a owner-occupied of 43.3% compared to 28.8% in Santa Monica.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Santa Monica leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSSanta Monica has a per capita income of $90,657 vs $66,936 in Berkeley (35% higher). Santa Monica has a poverty rate of 11.6% compared to 16.8% in Berkeley. Berkeley: 66,168 vs Santa Monica: 54,093 for labor force.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Santa Monica leads
Source: FBI UCRSanta Monica has a property crime clearance of 11.9% compared to 8.6% in Berkeley. Santa Monica has a violent crime clearance of 49.7% compared to 36.1% in Berkeley. Berkeley has a burglary rate (per 1k) of 6.61 compared to 8.49 in Santa Monica.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Santa Monica leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauSanta Monica has a high school diploma or higher of 62.3% compared to 51.9% in Berkeley. Santa Monica has a bachelor's degree or higher of 55.4% compared to 47.7% in Berkeley.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBerkeley has a population of 120,223, about 1.3x the size of Santa Monica (91,535). Berkeley skews younger with a median age of 32.9 vs 42.9.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Santa Monica
Berkeley
Healthcare — Santa Monica leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareSanta Monica: 3.8 vs Berkeley: 3.3 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSSanta Monica has a drive alone of 50.6% compared to 27.4% in Berkeley. Berkeley has a public transit of 15.8% compared to 2.8% in Santa Monica. Berkeley has a bicycle of 4.8% compared to 2.7% in Santa Monica.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Santa Monica, CA
Compare Santa Monica against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.