Cost of living in Rancho Santa Margarita, California
Rancho Santa Margarita, California has about 46,990 people. Typical rent is $2,625 a month, including utilities, and a typical household earns $152,560 a year. Both figures are Census 2020–2024 medians, not a listing or your pay. This site does not approve or deny benefits. A missing figure stays blank. We do not guess it.
Simple answer
Typical rent is $2,625 a month.
Rancho Santa Margarita is a city in California. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $152,560 a year.
- People
- 46,990
- Census average, 2020–2024
- Typical rent
- $2,625
- Median gross rent, includes utilities
- Typical pay
- $152,560
- Median household income, yearly
- Typical home
- $971,200
- Median home value
- 2-bedroom fair rent
- $3,057
- Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, CA HUD Metro FMR Area
Rancho Santa Margarita, California has about 46,990 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.
A typical home is worth about $971,200.
HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Orange County is $3,057 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Rancho Santa Margarita. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.
In the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area, prices sit at 113.6 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.
California taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 9.0% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Rancho Santa Margarita's exact store tax.
In July 2026, a typical California home paid 33.61¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Rancho Santa Margarita's bill.
In 2025, all-grades gas in California averaged $4.53 a gallon. EIA prints this yearly price for only some states.
Among 982 places we list in California with a rent figure, 166 have higher typical rent than Rancho Santa Margarita.
Nearby places
- Coto de Caza
Typical rent $3,501
Compare with Rancho Santa Margarita - Trabuco CanyonCompare with Rancho Santa Margarita
- Las Flores
Typical rent $2,938
Compare with Rancho Santa Margarita - Mission Viejo
Typical rent $2,839
Compare with Rancho Santa Margarita - Lake Forest
Typical rent $2,672
Compare with Rancho Santa Margarita - Ladera Ranch
Typical rent $3,350
Compare with Rancho Santa Margarita - Laguna Hills
Typical rent $2,728
- Laguna Woods
Typical rent $2,328
EBT nearby
USDA has a live map of stores that take SNAP. We did not copy that store list here. The downloadable file is a history file for 2005 through 2025, so the live map is the one to use.
Locator page updated 2026-09-11. Last checked 2026-10-16.
Food stamps (SNAP) tools in California
Bigger places in California
Census 2020-2024. HUD rents for October 2026–September 2027. BEA prices for 2024. Taxes as of January 1, 2026. Checked 2026-10-16. 15,000 places are in this guide.