Columbus, OH vs Denver, CO
Moving from Columbus to Denver? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($333,537 → $573,221 median home) and taxes.
Columbus vs Denver 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 Columbus, OH, you'd need about $111,770 in Denver, CO (+$11,770).
Livability — Columbus, OH: 69 · Denver, CO: 52 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,474 sqft in Columbus vs 1,657 sqft in Denver ($202 vs $302 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Columbus, OH | Denver, CO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,288 | $22,920 | +$4,632 |
| Groceries | $4,706 | $5,079 | +$373 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $4,050 | +$1,025 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,788 | −$312 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $2,800 | +$1,500 |
| Taxes | $9,711 | $9,828 | +$117 |
| Total | $39,130 | $46,464 | +$7,334 |
Side by side
| Metric | Columbus, OH | Denver, CO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.6 | 105.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.20% | 4.26% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.6% | 5.7% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 54 | 64 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.38 | $6.02 |
| Median home price | $333,537 | $573,221 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.4× | 5.9× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.2% | -2.9% |
| Price per square foot | $202 | $302 |
| Median rent | $1,524 | $1,910 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 7.77% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 4.40% |
| Property tax rate | 1.46% | 0.52% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.79% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 28 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 16.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.30 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 18 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 3 |