Page 2 of Best Memory Care in Santa Barbara, CA

Why trust this guide? Our editorial team analyzed 13 memory care providers in Santa Barbara, CA using CA Dept. of Social Services (CDSS) data, inspection records, complaints, amenities, and facility-level details. How we rank memory care in CA
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Last updated
We analyzed These are the providers in Santa Barbara, CA our team has analyzed — not a count of every memory care provider in Santa Barbara, CA. Home health and home care providers may be included if they specialize in memory care services.
13 providers
Other senior care options in Santa Barbara:

Video Tour: Top-rated Memory Care facilities in Santa Barbara, California.

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Compare Memory Care around Santa Barbara (Metro Area)

Info below is compiled from the CA Dept. of Social Services (CDSS), senior community websites & trusted data sources such as Walk Score & BBB.

Communities are listed from highest-ranked to lowest-ranked based on our methodology.

Care Types in This Table AL (Assisted Living): Housing with help for daily activities like bathing, dressing, and medication, without 24-hour skilled nursing. NH (Nursing Home): 24/7 skilled nursing care for residents with complex, ongoing medical needs. SNF (Skilled Nursing Facility): Round-the-clock nursing care, often for recovery after surgery, injury, or illness. MC (Memory Care): Secured, specialized care for people living with Alzheimer's or dementia.
City and state of the facility. Used for mapping and state-average comparisons.
Licensed bed capacity (maximum allowed). Not the same as how many beds are currently filled.
Indicates whether residents are allowed to have pets in the facility.
Third-party neighborhood walkability score (0–100). Convenience/context metric, not a healthcare quality measure.
A 0–100 score of a facility's regulatory inspection record, shown as a letter and compared with other facilities of the same kind in the same state. This is a proprietary Assisted Living Magazine grade. It is not a government rating. A dash means we have no inspection data for that facility.
Count of regulatory inspections in the reporting window. Higher volume can reflect more oversight visits, complaint-driven surveys, or routine licensure cycles.
Visits or investigations linked to complaints, as counted in the state record (may differ from routine annual surveys).
Count of California state "Type A" citations — the state's most serious citation category (immediate or serious harm to residents), from California state inspection data.
Number of years the company has been in operation.
Reported or derived occupancy for the facility—typically how fully licensed capacity is utilized. Compare across peers in the same market.
Name of the licensed owner, operator, or managing entity as filed with the state. Useful for grouping facilities under the same organization.
Housing or bed configuration options (e.g. studio, shared), often from facility-reported amenities and licensing details.
Covenant Living at the Samarkand
MC
AL
NH
SNF
Santa Barbara (Samarkand)
379
Facility 379
CA AVG 116
Rank #27 / 1,021
No
50
Facility 50
CA AVG 56
Rank #699 / 1,105
?8
1
Facility 1
CA AVG 13
Rank #109 / 956
2
Facility 2
CA AVG 3
Rank #461 / 979
33
Facility 33
CA AVG 12
Rank #42 / 974
85.2%
Facility 85.2%
CA AVG 74.2%
Rank #238 / 926
Covenant Living West-
Casa Dorinda
MC
AL
NH
SNF
Santa Barbara
360
Facility 360
CA AVG 116
Rank #30 / 1,021
No
2
Facility 2
CA AVG 56
Rank #1,096 / 1,105
?12
4
Facility 4
CA AVG 13
Rank #294 / 956
2
Facility 2
CA AVG 3
Rank #461 / 979
32
Facility 32
CA AVG 12
Rank #54 / 974
85.3%
Facility 85.3%
CA AVG 74.2%
Rank #234 / 926
Montecito Retirement Association-
Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara
MC
Santa Barbara (Oak Park)
50
Facility 50
CA AVG 116
Rank #760 / 1,021
No
75
Facility 75
CA AVG 56
Rank #291 / 1,105
D-21
10
Facility 10
CA AVG 13
Rank #535 / 956
11
Facility 11
CA AVG 3
Rank #878 / 979
8
Facility 8
CA AVG 12
Rank #468 / 974
64.0%
Facility 64.0%
CA AVG 74.2%
Rank #693 / 926
Oak Cottage Operator Nt Hci LLC And Integral Sl MgmtStudio / Suite

Rank badges are statewide and care-type specific: each memory care community is ranked against every other CA memory care community we track that reports that metric, not just the 13 analyzed for Santa Barbara. See how we rank facilities

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Overview of Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara

Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara provides memory care in Santa Barbara, CA. Memory care offers a secured setting with supervision for a resident who may be at risk of wandering, so the community can suit someone living with Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia who needs structured oversight.

Located in the Oak Park neighborhood, the community has 50 beds, a size that supports a smaller setting where residents and staff can get to know one another. Housing includes studios and suites, with a studio providing a single private living space. A Walk Score of 75 places the area in the very walkable band, meaning most errands can be done on foot and a resident who no longer drives may still reach nearby shops, pharmacies, or cafes independently.

Tyler Barnes serves as the administrator, and Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara is operated by Oak Cottage Operator Nt Hci and Integral Sl Mgmt.

Contact Oak Cottage of Santa Barbara

Overview of Covenant Living at the Samarkand

Covenant Living at the Samarkand is a senior living community that mainly provides services for residential living, assisted living, and skilled nursing seniors. The senior living community is dedicated to empowering all residents to live on their terms. The resort-like community boasts a relaxing and calming experience for its residents because it allows them to choose a lifestyle that matches their needs independently.
The Covenant Senior Living lifestyle is all about convenience and individuality. Many of their amenities and services are designed to ensure that a resident’s needs are met and satisfied. These include a library, wellness center, courtyard, and garden, and an arts and crafts studio, while services include housekeeping, laundry, and transportation.

Contact Covenant Living at the Samarkand

Casa Dorinda

300 Hot Springs Rd, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Overview of Casa Dorinda

Casa Dorinda provides assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing care in Santa Barbara, California. Assisted living includes help with daily tasks such as dressing, bathing, and medication while a resident keeps an apartment. Memory care offers a secured setting with supervision for someone at risk of wandering, while skilled nursing provides licensed nursing care on site around the clock.

Having these care levels within one community can suit a resident whose needs grow over time, since different levels of support remain available without requiring a move to another community. Casa Dorinda has 360 beds, making it a larger community with more residents and staff, as well as programming on a larger scale. Total nurse staffing is 2 hours and 33 minutes per resident each day, representing the amount of nurse staffing time allocated to each resident across a day.

Residents can use the pool and take part in cultural events, arts and crafts, fitness classes, and nature walks. These activities provide options for exercise, creative work, cultural programming, and time outdoors. Medicare and private pay are accepted, giving families the option to use Medicare coverage or pay directly. Montecito Retirement Association operates Casa Dorinda, and Brian McCague serves as administrator.

Contact Casa Dorinda

Weighting overview

  • 35%
    Resident Experience
  • 25%
    Regulatory
  • 15%
    Visual Media
  • 10%
    Website
  • 10%
    Stability
  • 5%
    Environment
01

Resident & Family Experience 35%

The single largest share of every ranking. Aggregated review sentiment and volume from major platforms — the closest signal to real resident experience.

  • Includes
  • Review Sentiment
  • Review Volume
02

Regulatory & Safety Record 25%

State inspection records, citations, and complaint visits. We weight per-inspection rates more heavily than raw counts.

  • Includes
  • State Inspections
  • Citations/Inspection
  • % Inspections w/ Citations
  • Complaint Visits
  • Accreditations
  • BBB Rating
03

Visual Media & Transparency 15%

Communities that publish high-quality visuals give families a real preview. No photos or tours = a negative transparency signal.

  • Includes
  • Video Tours
  • Virtual Walkthroughs
  • Photo Quantity
  • Photo Quality
04

Website & Operator Transparency 10%

Site quality and whether the operator publishes basic accountability information — staff names, contact details, ownership.

  • Includes
  • Website Content
  • Mobile Usability
  • Staff Info Available
  • Owner Info Available
05

Community Stability 10%

Operational signals indicating whether a community is well-run and meeting demand.

  • Includes
  • Occupancy Rate
  • Bed Options
06

Environment & Pricing 5%

Walkability and pricing transparency. Walk Score is weighted higher for Independent Living than for Memory Care, where most residents do not leave unaccompanied.

  • Includes
  • Walk Score
  • Pricing Transparency
No paid rankings Communities cannot pay to influence placement.
How we're paid: If we help you find a community and you move in, that community may pay us a referral fee. This never affects where they rank or what you pay. Learn more
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Frequently Asked Questions about Memory Care in Santa Barbara, CA

What's the difference between assisted living and memory care in California?

Assisted living in California supports residents with daily activities (bathing, dressing, medication management) while preserving independence. Memory care is a specialized form of assisted living for residents living with Alzheimer's or dementia, and adds 24/7 secured environments, dementia-trained staff, and structured routines designed to reduce confusion and wandering.

Does California Medicaid cover memory care?

California Medicaid does not directly pay room-and-board for memory care, but most states (including California) offer Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waivers that can offset the cost of care services delivered inside a licensed community. Eligibility, waitlists, and covered services vary — check directly with the state Medicaid agency.

What is memory care?

Memory care is a specialized form of assisted living for residents living with Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia, with secured environments, dementia-trained staff, and routines built to reduce confusion and wandering.

How many memory care communities are listed on this page?

This page features 13 memory care communities in Santa Barbara, CA. Use the filters and comparison tools above to compare ratings, amenities, and pricing.

How do I choose the right memory care community in Santa Barbara, CA?

Start by matching the level of care offered to the resident's current and anticipated needs, then compare licensing status, staff-to-resident ratios, recent inspection results, and pricing. Tour at least two or three communities in Santa Barbara, CA, talk to current residents and families, and confirm what is included in the base rate versus billed as add-on services.

What should I look for when visiting memory care communities in Santa Barbara, CA?

Pay attention to staff interactions with residents, cleanliness and odor, food quality at meal times, the activity calendar, and how questions about pricing and care plans are answered. Ask to see the most recent state inspection report, the move-out / level-of-care-change policy, and a sample monthly bill that lists every fee.

Memory Care in Santa Barbara at a glance

Avg Walk Score: 54/ 100The average Walk Score across facilities in Santa Barbara, CA. A third-party neighborhood walkability score (0–100) measuring convenience and context, not healthcare quality. Individual facilities can vary widely from this average.
National Average: 50/ 100
Avg No. of Beds: 115The average licensed bed capacity across facilities in Santa Barbara, CA. Individual facilities can vary widely from this average.
National Average: 90