Scotts Valley, California Cost Of Living

Buy Rent

F

Overall 84%

Goods & Services 30%

Housing 215%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2019 and was released from C2ER in January, 2020; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Scotts Valley	California	National
Cost of living	184	140	100
Goods & Services	130	111	100
Groceries	126	118	100
Health care	127	113	100
Housing	315	196	100
Transportation	137	128	100
Utilities	121	118	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Scotts Valley is 32% higher than the California average
The cost of living in Scotts Valley is 84% higher than the national average
Scotts Valley housing is 215% higher than the national average
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average
California state income tax is 59% lower than the national average

Most Affordable Places to Live in and Around Scotts Valley

See all the best places to live around Scotts Valley

Compare Scotts Valley, CA Cost of Living

See all Scotts Valley poll results

The best places in California

Here are the best places to live in California

Top 10 cities in California with the best education system

10 best cities to buy a new house in California

Check out the 10 safest cities in California

Salary Calculator

This is how much you would need to earn in

Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$111,713	$9,309	$2,606	$3,352
Renters	$88,173	$7,348	$2,057	$2,645

The percentage of monthly income spent on housing related expenses can help predict the affordability of housing in Scotts Valley, CA, as well as what the overall cost of living might be. Generally, a good rule to follow is that the debt-to-income (DTI) level you want to maintain is 28 percent or less of your income on your rent or mortgage payments and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses and debts. In Scotts Valley, homeowners have a median income of $111,713. Using that number, a maximum of $2,606 per month should be allocated to housing expenses. For those who are renting instead of owning, the median income is $88,173, which means there is a maximum of $2,057 to be spent on the costs of renting a home or apartment.

California Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
California	7.25%	10.5%

California Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
California	1%	13.3%

Goods & Services

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$19.71	$17.49	12.7%
Beauty Salon	$67.86	$38.17	77.8%
Toothpaste	$2.93	$2.32	26.2%
Shampoo	$1.33	$1.01	31.4%
Movie	$12.11	$10.72	12.9%
Bowling	$19.83	$13.86	43.1%

Groceries

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.71	$3.90	4.9%
Fried Chicken	$1.35	$1.40	3.3%
Milk	$2.39	$1.96	21.8%
Potatoes	$2.66	$3.18	16.4%
Pizza	$13.70	$10.39	31.8%
Beer	$10.49	$9.23	13.7%

Health Care

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$136.71	$106.34	28.6%
Doctor	$150.71	$115.25	30.8%
Dentist	$139.14	$98.38	41.4%
Ibuprofen	$11.99	$9.26	29.5%
Lipitor	$442.32	$466.47	5.2%

Housing

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$654,600.00	$184,700.00	254.4%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$3,196.29	$1,273.32	151.0%
Apartment Rent	$2,103.00	$949.00	121.6%

Transportation

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.79	$2.59	46.2%
Tire Balancing	$61.00	$48.90	24.8%

Utilities

Item	Scotts Valley	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$228.47	$167.60	36.3%
Phone	$184.65	$163.42	13.0%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Live Oak city, CA	8,501	115	15%
Pajaro, CA	3,524	111	11%
Paradise Park, CA	530	138	38%
Amesti, CA	3,205	122	22%
Watsonville, CA	52,915	125	25%
Scotts Valley, CA	11,824	184	84%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Holiday City-Berkeley, NJ	11,824	105	5%
Artesia, NM	11,817	90	-10%
Vinings, GA	11,816	129	29%
Schiller Park, IL	11,813	104	4%
Mays Chapel, MD	11,811	131	31%
Scotts Valley, CA	11,824	184	84%

Source: The Scotts Valley, CA cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2019.

Scotts Valley, CA Cost of Living

Find real estate listings

Find rental listings