Living in Columbus, GA
Mid-size city in Georgia
Columbus is a mid-size city in Georgia, home to about 204,000 people, with 299,000 living within 31 mi. Day to day, most trips are by car. Life moves at a slow, calm pace, and homes are a mix of apartments and houses.
Is Columbus a good place to live? Pros and cons
👍 Pros
- Affordable housing: a typical 3-bedroom home is about $163k and rents for $1,450 a month
- Low natural disaster risk: 3 federally declared disasters since 2000
- Strong healthcare: 2 top-rated (4–5★) hospitals within 31 mi
- Low taxes: about $1,500 state income tax per resident, 0.84% property tax
👎 Cons
- Smaller job market: about 299,000 people live within 31 mi
- Fewer graduates: 30% of adults have a bachelor's degree or higher
- Fewer outdoor escapes: no big hills or water close by
- Few dog parks: 3 within 9 mi
Whether it's a good place for you depends on what you value. Take the quiz to see how Columbus ranks against your own priorities.
Key facts
Living in Columbus: common questions
What is the cost of living in Columbus?
A typical 3-bedroom home is worth about $163k, and a 3-bedroom rents for about $1,450 a month including utilities. Overall living costs are below the US average (index 89, where the US is 100).
What are taxes like in Columbus?
Georgia collects about $1,500 in state income tax per resident, and homeowners here pay about 0.84% of their home's value in property tax each year.
Is Columbus safe?
Columbus isn't in the FBI's 2019 city crime table, so Best Life Fit Me counts its safety as average.
What is the weather like in Columbus?
Columbus has mild winters: winter days average around 60°F and summer days around 90°F.
Does Columbus get natural disasters?
Natural disaster risk is low, mainly from flooding: 3 federally declared disasters have hit the county since 2000, and FEMA expects about 0.26 deaths or injuries per 100,000 residents a year.
What is the nearest major airport to Columbus?
The nearest major airport is ATL, about 82 mi away.
How Columbus scores
Each bar compares Columbus with the other 1143 places in Best Life Fit Me. A dot shows where it sits between two ends, such as major metro and small town; neither end is better. Coloured bars run from poor (red) to excellent (green).
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Nearby
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Is Columbus right for you?
Answer 27 quick questions and see how it ranks against your priorities.