US metro area
Santa Maria
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA, CA
State: California
«Golden State»
“Eureka”
I have found it
- Capital
- Sacramento
- In the US since
- 1850
Nickname, motto, capital and year are reference facts compiled by hand from the nicknames list, mottos list, admission dates list. The outline comes from US Census Bureau state boundaries (us-atlas).
Santa Maria: Population — 444,500 people; Per capita income — $88,347; Typical rent — $3,279; Typical home value — $988,948; Air: median AQI — 49 AQI. Data for 22 of 23 connected indicators.
Strengths
Top quarter of the set, for indicators with a known direction.
- Per capita income: $88,347
- Hot days (max ≥ +30 °C): 15 days per year
- Muggy days (dew point ≥ +20 °C): 0 days per year
Weaknesses
Bottom quarter of the set. This compares places; it does not rate life in them.
- Typical rent: $3,279
- Typical home value: $988,948
- Price level: 108.8 100 = US average
- Earthquakes M4.5+ within 100 km: 0.05 per year
Money
| Indicator | Value | Among metro areas | Period and source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Per capita income | $88,347 | 2024 · BEA Regional (CAINC1), sum across CBSA counties calculation: sum of income and population across the CBSA's counties, not a direct measurement of the metro area | |
| Typical rent | $3,279 | 2026-09-30 · Zillow ZORI listing-based index; approximate match to the CBSA by name | |
| Typical home value | $988,948 | 2026-09-30 · Zillow ZHVI index; approximate match to the CBSA by name | |
| Price level | 108.8 100 = US average | 2024 · BEA Regional Price Parities official BEA estimate |
Climate and risks
| Indicator | Value | Among metro areas | Period and source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air: median AQI | 49 AQI | 2024 · EPA AirData (median AQI) measured at monitoring stations; coverage of the metro area is incomplete | |
| Days with unhealthy air | 2 days per year | 2024 · EPA AirData measured at monitoring stations; coverage of the metro area is incomplete | |
| Hot days (max ≥ +30 °C) | 15 days per year | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center | |
| Frost days (min ≤ −10 °C) | 0 days per year | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center | |
| Severe frost (min ≤ −20 °C) | 0.0 days per year | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center | |
| Ice days (max ≤ 0 °C) | 0 days per year | by size, not rated | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center |
| Heating degree days | 1,214 °C·days per year | by size, not rated | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center |
| Cooling degree days | 120 °C·days per year | by size, not rated | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center |
| Rainy days | 34 days per year | by size, not rated | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center |
| Annual precipitation | 336 mm per year | by size, not rated | 2016-2025 · NOAA GHCN-Daily measured at a single station, often at an airport; not an average for the metro area; years with incomplete data are excluded station SANTA MARIA PUBLIC AP, 6.7 km from the center |
| Daylight on December 21 | 9.8 hours | by size, not rated | December 21 and June 21 (does not depend on the year) · calculated from latitude calculation; cloud cover is not taken into account |
| Daylight on June 21 | 14.5 hours | by size, not rated | December 21 and June 21 (does not depend on the year) · calculated from latitude calculation; cloud cover is not taken into account |
| Air humidity | 78 % | by size, not rated | 2021-2025 · Meteostat (CC BY 4.0) measured at a single station; only measured values were used, years with incomplete data are excluded station Santa Maria Public Airport, 6.5 km from the center |
| Muggy days (dew point ≥ +20 °C) | 0 days per year | 2021-2025 · Meteostat (CC BY 4.0) measured at a single station; only measured values were used, years with incomplete data are excluded station Santa Maria Public Airport, 6.5 km from the center | |
| Distance to the sea | 20 km | by size, not rated | 2006-2025 · Natural Earth, USGS accuracy is limited by the map scale, on the order of a few kilometers |
| Earthquakes M4.5+ within 100 km | 0.05 per year | 2006-2025 · Natural Earth, USGS 20-year catalog: rare strong events may fall outside the window; completeness outside the US depends on the region | |
| Strongest earthquake in the period | 4.8 magnitude | 2006-2025 · Natural Earth, USGS observed tremors over 20 years only; no events means no value, not zero |
Urban environment
| Indicator | Value | Among metro areas | Period and source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 444,500 people | by size, not rated | 2024 · BEA Regional (CAINC1), sum across CBSA counties calculation: sum of population across the CBSA's counties |
Missing from the summary (11)
A gap means no data, not a zero value.
- Median household income (Money): Source not connected: the Census ACS loader requires a free CENSUS_API_KEY, and no key has been issued.
- Share of residents below the poverty line (Money): Source not connected: the Census ACS loader requires a free CENSUS_API_KEY, and no key has been issued.
- Unemployment (Work): Source not connected: the Census ACS loader requires a free CENSUS_API_KEY, and no key has been issued.
- Bachelor's degree among adults 25+ (Urban environment): Source not connected: the Census ACS loader requires a free CENSUS_API_KEY, and no key has been issued.
- School outcomes (Schools and family): Source not connected: school results and progress are published by states in different formats; whether an address is assigned to a school is outside the dataset. The nearest school is not assumed to be available for enrollment.
- Violent crime (Safety): Source not connected: the FBI Crime Data Explorer requires an api.data.gov key; agency data are incomplete and do not align with metro area boundaries.
- Hot days (Climate and risks): Source not connected: a climate normal for metro area boundaries is needed (NOAA).
- Natural hazards (Climate and risks): Source not connected: the FEMA National Risk Index has not yet been loaded or matched to CBSAs.
- Vote share in presidential elections (Political context): Source not connected: official county-level results with the year and denominator are needed. These are vote shares in specific elections, not shares of Democratic or Republican residents.
- Home language: second most common (Culture and everyday life): Source not connected: the Census ACS loader requires a free CENSUS_API_KEY, and no key has been issued.
- Snowfall days (Climate and risks): The source has no value for this place.
Indicators describe the whole metro area (CBSA), not the city within its limits. Main state of the metro area: California.
Compare head to head
A winner for each indicator and category. The score counts indicators; it is not a universal rating of a place.
Nearby in state and size
Dataset version: us-2026-10-19. Indicators describe territories, not people; no overall score is computed for a place.