Birmingham, AL vs Columbus, OH
Moving from Birmingham to Columbus? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($262,556 → $333,537 median home) and taxes.
Birmingham vs Columbus at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Birmingham, AL, you'd need about $103,122 in Columbus, OH (+$3,122).
Livability — Birmingham, AL: 71 · Columbus, OH: 69 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 3,903 sqft in Birmingham vs 2,474 sqft in Columbus ($128 vs $202 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Birmingham, AL | Columbus, OH | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $17,376 | $18,288 | +$912 |
| Groceries | $4,729 | $4,706 | −$23 |
| Transportation | $3,465 | $3,025 | −$440 |
| Utilities | $1,884 | $2,100 | +$216 |
| Insurance | $2,400 | $1,300 | −$1,100 |
| Taxes | $9,314 | $9,711 | +$398 |
| Total | $39,168 | $39,130 | −$38 |
Side by side
| Metric | Birmingham, AL | Columbus, OH |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 91.8 | 94.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.90% | 4.20% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | -2.6% | 5.6% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 57 | 54 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.22 | $5.38 |
| Median home price | $262,556 | $333,537 |
| Home price ÷ income | 3.8× | 4.4× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 2.0% | 1.2% |
| Price per square foot | $128 | $202 |
| Median rent | $1,448 | $1,524 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.8% | 10.0% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.25% | 7.24% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.00% | 3.50% |
| Property tax rate | 0.50% | 1.46% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,200 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $7,000 | $10,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 0.70% | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 27 | 24 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,400 | $1,300 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,900 | $1,300 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $800 | $600 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 17.4 | 19.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 2.95 | 3.25 |
| Violent crime /100k | 450 | 300 |
| Avg summer high °F | 91 | 85 |
| Avg winter low °F | 33 | 20 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |