Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Santa Barbara, CA and Haugesund

For one person, living is cheaper in Haugesund: $2,654 a month against $4,295 in Santa Barbara, CA, rent and utilities included – about $19,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

211

Cost of Living Index in Santa Barbara, CA
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Santa Barbara, CA Living Index
130

Cost of Living Index in Haugesund
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Haugesund Living Index

Jump to prices

Santa Barbara, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$4,295

/mo nomad

Haugesund

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,654

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Santa Barbara, CA and in Haugesund

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Santa Barbara, CA and in Haugesund actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $4,295 per month in Santa Barbara, CA vs $2,654 in Haugesund, rent included.

Santa Barbara, CA $4,295
Haugesund $2,654

A couple spends around $6,163 per month in Santa Barbara, CA vs $3,956 in Haugesund, rent included.

Santa Barbara, CA $6,163
Haugesund $3,956

A family of three spends $8,031 per month in Santa Barbara, CA vs $5,259 in Haugesund, rent included.

Santa Barbara, CA $8,031
Haugesund $5,259

Santa Barbara, CA costs about 62% more than Haugesund, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Santa Barbara, CA and Haugesund sit above the global median – Santa Barbara, CA by 218%, Haugesund by 97%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.23 $25.23

$21.97 NOK 207

14.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$99.0 $99.0

$105 NOK 987

-5.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.84 $14.84

$14.38 NOK 135

3.20%

Cappuccino

$6.04 $6.04

$4.59 NOK 43.19

31.59%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.82 $3.82

$5.08 NOK 47.78

-24.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 $3.08

$3.98 NOK 37.48

-22.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.86 $7.86

$11.63 NOK 109

-32.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$11.96 $11.96

$10.31 NOK 97.0

16.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 $1.50

$2.18 NOK 20.52

-31.19%

White Bread (500g)

$4.69 $4.69

$3.80 NOK 35.73

23.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.92 $6.92

$3.50 NOK 32.92

97.71%

Eggs

$5.19 $5.19

$4.79 NOK 45.06

8.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.09 $19.09

$11.80 NOK 111

61.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.35 $14.35

$15.02 NOK 141

-4.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.85 $21.85

$33.81 NOK 318

-35.37%

Apples (1kg)

$8.16 $8.16

$3.08 NOK 29.02

164.94%

Banana (1kg)

$3.24 $3.24

$2.12 NOK 20.00

52.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.12 $6.12

$3.44 NOK 32.37

77.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$9.85 $9.85

$4.21 NOK 39.58

133.97%

Potato (1kg)

$8.56 $8.56

$2.42 NOK 22.77

253.72%

Onion (1kg)

$4.76 $4.76

$3.32 NOK 31.23

43.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.55 $3.55

$3.00 NOK 28.20

18.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.80 $2.80

$1.83 NOK 17.26

53.01%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.92 $11.92

$17.21 NOK 162

-30.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.30 $16.30

$14.47 NOK 136

12.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.30 $2.30

$3.58 NOK 33.70

-35.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 $4.41

$4.16 NOK 39.17

6.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.44 $2.44

$3.56 NOK 33.51

-31.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.7 $52.7

$67.4 NOK 635

-21.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 $2.93

$12.19 NOK 115

-75.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.45 $2.45

$1.79 NOK 16.81

36.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$61.1 $61.1

$56.2 NOK 529

8.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 $1.54

$2.45 NOK 23.03

-37.14%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$37.7K $37.7K

$44.3K NOK 417.0K

-14.89%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$25.6K $25.6K

$43.5K NOK 409.6K

-41.12%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$257 $257

$275 NOK 2,591

-6.67%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$73.8 $73.8

$32.80 NOK 309

125.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$71.1 $71.1

$55.8 NOK 525

27.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$76.9 $76.9

$49.71 NOK 468

54.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.90 $19.90

$36.17 NOK 341

-44.98%

Cinema Ticket

$14.07 $14.07

$16.92 NOK 159

-16.84%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$1,398 $1,398

$241 NOK 2,269

479.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$37.5K $37.5K

$2,918 NOK 27.5K

1186.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.3 $88.3

$97.4 NOK 917

-9.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.98 $45.98

$53.6 NOK 504

-14.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.1 $79.1

$87.1 NOK 820

-9.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$132 $132

$155 NOK 1,463

-15.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,815 $2,815

$1,576 NOK 14.8K

78.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,571 $2,571

$1,067 NOK 10.0K

141.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,807 $4,807

$2,099 NOK 19.8K

128.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$4,170 $4,170

$1,668 NOK 15.7K

150.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$10.2K $10.2K

$6,302 NOK 59.3K

61.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$9,905 $9,905

$4,637 NOK 43.6K

113.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,229 $5,229

$3,952 NOK 37.2K

32.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

5.2

29.81%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Santa Barbara, CA: October 10, 2026

Last update for Haugesund: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Santa Barbara, CA

$2.6K 59.9%

Haugesund

$1.1K 40.2% 58.5% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Santa Barbara, CA

$575 13.4%

Haugesund

$471 17.7% 18.1% $104

Eating Out

Santa Barbara, CA

$410 9.5%

Haugesund

$389 14.7% 5% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Santa Barbara, CA

$402 9.4%

Haugesund

$364 13.7% 9.5% $38

Clothing & Footwear

Santa Barbara, CA

$155 3.6%

Haugesund

$177 6.7% 13.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Santa Barbara, CA

$105 2.4%

Haugesund

$84 3.2% 20.4% $21

Getting Around

Santa Barbara, CA

$78 1.8%

Haugesund

$103 3.9% 32.3% $25

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,815 in Santa Barbara, CA versus $1,576 in Haugesund. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 32% higher in Santa Barbara, CA, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $99.0 in Santa Barbara, CA versus $105 in Haugesund. Groceries tell a different story – $575 in Santa Barbara, CA vs $471 in Haugesund – so Haugesund wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Santa Barbara, CA

🇳🇴 Haugesund

🕒 Local time

04:25 4:25 AM

13:25 1:25 PM

9 h ahead of Santa Barbara, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

91,196

38,362

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.889 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, EUR to USD – United States Dollar Converter

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

United States Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.889 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

NOK to USD in detail →

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Santa Barbara, CA Haugesund 8,420 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

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Santa Barbara, CA
Haugesund

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Santa Barbara, CA vs Haugesund: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Santa Barbara, CA costs about 62% more than Haugesund, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,443 per month in Santa Barbara, CA and $3,981 in Haugesund. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Haugesund, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 22% more in Santa Barbara, CA, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $99.0 in Santa Barbara, CA and $105 in Haugesund. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$2,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $4,295 in Santa Barbara, CA and $2,654 in Haugesund. You'll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Haugesund costs $2,654 versus $4,295 in Santa Barbara, CA. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Haugesund. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Santa Barbara, CA makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.