Health care · Metro area · California
Medical and dental practices in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area
How the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for medical and dental practices: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #325 of 387 scored metro areas
#23 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 1,569
- 99 chain locations (6%)
- Official establishments
- 804
- −2.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $217.7M
- On medical and dental services · $1,455 a household
- Spending per listing
- $139K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 104.9
- 24% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 442,065
- −1.4% since 2020
See the medical and dental practices around any address in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area
The site report maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for medical and dental practices in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area is 33 (lower middle), #325 of 387 scored metro areas and #23 of 25 scored metro areas based in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
At $1,455 per household (13% above the U.S. average), households in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area spend about $217.7M a year on medical and dental services. That works out to $139K per practice, 9% below the U.S. figure of $152K.
The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area has 1,569 medical and dental practices on map listings as of September 2026. 99 of them (6%) are chain locations, against 11% across the U.S. That comes to 104.9 for every 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 84.5.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area was 804 in 2023, down 2.9% from 2019. That is one for every 186 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 14 SBA-backed loans worth $10.7M have gone to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. Population estimates put the population change in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the medical and dental practices counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 104.9 | 88.3 | 84.5 |
| Spending per listing | $139K | $166K | $152K |
| Households per official establishment | 186 | 199 | 270 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −2.9% | +2.6% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.4% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,455 | $1,464 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $98,161 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 804−2.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 5,888
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $531.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 488Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,56999 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,428The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 14
- Amount
- $10.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 442,065−1.4% since 2020
- Households
- 149,608
- Median age
- 37.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 52%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 2,734 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 162
- Median household income
- $98,161+31.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $140,895
- Median home value
- $790,700
- Jobs located here
- 193,212
- Daytime population
- 452,081Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the medical and dental practices on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDoctors, dentists and clinics across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for medical and dental practices, numbered among those based in California, with the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Stockton-Lodi, CA | 78 | 1,341 | 54.7 | $253K | +5.5% | #20 of 387 |
| 2Vallejo, CA | 76 | 841 | 53.4 | $271K | +0.6% | #28 of 387 |
| 3Yuba City, CA | 74 | 369 | 59.6 | $214K | +3.3% | #34 of 387 |
| 4Merced, CA | 73 | 383 | 44.5 | $264K | +5.1% | #37 of 387 |
| 5Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 68 | 6,153 | 69.8 | $205K | +3.2% | #63 of 387 |
| 6El Centro, CA | 63 | 266 | 53.6 | $208K | +1.1% | #90 of 387 |
| 7Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 62 | 1,798 | 63.1 | $194K | +2.3% | #100 of 387 |
| 8Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 60 | 10,360 | 71.4 | $191K | +3.5% | #110 of 387 |
| 9Visalia, CA | 59 | 781 | 54.5 | $224K | +2.4% | #115 of 387 |
| 10Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | 59 | 1,496 | 78.3 | $191K | −0.4% | #116 of 387 |
| 23Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | 33 | 1,569 | 104.9 | $139K | −1.4% | #325 of 387 |
Other business types in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics33
- Dentists and orthodontists27
- Primary care and pediatrics43
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics51
- Chiropractors42
- Physical therapy52
- Optometrists and eye care53
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many medical and dental practices are in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,569 medical and dental practices in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. 99 of them (6%) are chain locations. The listings count every outpatient clinic and practice, and urgent care. Official counts show 804 businesses with payroll classed as offices of physicians, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists and therapists, and urgent care centers in 2023, down 2.9% from 2019. Another 488 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area spend on medical and dental services?
About $217.7M a year, or $1,455 per household. That is 13% above the U.S. average (an index of 113, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,569 medical and dental practices on map listings, it comes to $139K per practice. It is estimated from the incomes of the 149,608 households in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for medical and dental practices?
The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area has 104.9 medical and dental practices per 10,000 households, 24% above the U.S. rate of 84.5. Spending per practice is $139K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $152K. At the U.S. ratio of medical and dental practices to household spending, the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area would have about 1,428, against 1,569 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 186 households, against one for every 270 across the U.S. The official count fell 2.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area at 442,065 people in 2025, down 1.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 149,608 households. The median household income in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area is $98,161 a year, 22% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 31.5% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area scores 33 for medical and dental practices (lower middle), #325 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. It maps the medical and dental practices on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for medical and dental practices · All 56 business types in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.