Vista, CA Cost Of Living

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Vista cost of living index

In the event that the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used. Each cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. If the amount is below 100, it is lower than the national average. If the amount is above 100, it is higher than the national average.
Index	Vista	California	National
Cost of living index	137	140	100
Index	Vista	California	National
Goods & Services index	108	111	100
Groceries index	116	118	100
Health care index	110	113	100
Housing index	191	196	100
Transportation index	130	128	100
Utilities index	119	118	100

An overview of the general cost of living index for Vista, CA is displayed above for your reference. Residents in Vista, CA enjoy a cost of living index of 137. This index is 2% lower than the California average, and 37% higher than the national average. The following categories are used when determining the cost of living index for any given city: health care (5%), transportation (9%), utilities (10%), groceries (13%), housing (30%), and goods/services (33%). Clearly, housing and goods/services make up the majority of the formula for calculating the cost of living index. Because of this, the general cost of living for any given area can be estimated by looking at the cost of everyday goods in that area. For those living in Vista, CA, the average cost of goods and services is 3% lower than it is in California, and it is 8% higher than the national average.

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Did you know?

The cost of living in Vista is 2% lower than the California average.
The cost of living in Vista is 37% higher than the national average.
The cost of housing in Vista is 91% higher than the national average.
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average.
California state income tax is 55% lower than the national average.

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Salary Calculator

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

Use the salary calculator to compare your current salary in Vista, CA to any other city. The salary calculator will tell you how much you would need to earn in any given city to maintain the same standard of living based on the cost of living in each city. For example, if the cost of living in the city you are looking to relocate to is higher than the cost of living in Vista, CA, then you would need to earn more income in order to maintain the same standard of living. To use the Vista, CA salary calculator, simply enter in the name of the new city, then adjust the slider to your current income. The salary calculator will do the rest and let you know if you need to earn more or less in the new city. You will also see a complete breakdown of the cost of living.

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$74,075	$6,173	$1,728	$2,222
Renters	$44,650	$3,721	$1,042	$1,340

A good way to judge both the affordability of the housing and the cost of living is by simply calculating the maximum that a person should spend on housing in Vista, CA, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The safest way to live in the city is to avoid spending more than 28 percent of the gross income that one earns on costs that pertain to housing and no more than 36 percent on all expenses and debts. Vista, CA has a median income of about $74,075 for people who own homes. Based on that number, a person should spend a maximum of $1,728 on expenses related to housing. Renters have a slightly different median income, which is $44,650. Based on this average, renters should spend no more than $1,042 on all of their rental costs if they want to maintain a non-impoverished standard of living.

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%

When you are determining the total cost of living in Vista, CA you will want to make sure you consider both the California sales tax and the California income tax rates. Sales tax come in the form of taxes levied on both services and goods that are sold. The sales tax rates are different state to state and range from zero sales tax to higher than 7%. The sales tax in California is 7.25%, with the highest surtax being 10.5%. Tax that is on income by the government is income tax. Different states have different income tax rates and these rates can be higher or lower dependent on the corresponding tax bracket. The state income tax rates are different state to state and range from no income tax to more than 9% income tax. The income tax rates in California have a range from 1% to 13.3%.

Goods & Services

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$20.80	$17.49	18.9%
Beauty Salon	$61.25	$38.17	60.5%
Toothpaste	$2.49	$2.32	7.3%
Shampoo	$1.39	$1.01	37.4%
Movie	$14.12	$10.72	31.7%
Bowling	$20.67	$13.86	49.1%

Groceries

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.32	$3.90	14.9%
Fried Chicken	$1.79	$1.40	28.2%
Milk	$2.19	$1.96	11.6%
Potatoes	$2.99	$3.18	6.1%
Pizza	$10.99	$10.39	5.7%
Beer	$9.66	$9.23	4.7%

Health Care

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$114.50	$106.34	7.7%
Doctor	$131.25	$115.25	13.9%
Dentist	$104.00	$98.38	5.7%
Ibuprofen	$12.32	$9.26	33.0%
Lipitor	$483.87	$466.47	3.7%

Housing

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$392,700.00	$184,700.00	112.6%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$2,842.85	$1,273.32	123.3%
Apartment Rent	$1,331.00	$949.00	40.3%

Transportation

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.79	$2.59	46.2%
Tire Balancing	$52.00	$48.90	6.4%

Utilities

Item	Vista	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$230.87	$167.60	37.7%
Phone	$173.40	$163.42	6.1%

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.
Pala, CA	1,006	111	11%
Escondido, CA	149,912	134	34%
Camp Pendleton North, CA	7,885	137	37%
Oceanside, CA	173,829	137	37%
Fallbrook, CA	31,771	139	39%
Vista, CA	98,560	137	37%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Renton, WA	98,499	138	38%
San Angelo, TX	98,694	86	-14%
Albany, NY	98,425	102	2%
Davie, FL	98,717	109	9%
Flint, MI	98,918	81	-19%
Vista, CA	98,560	137	37%

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

Vista, CA Cost of Living