Columbus, OH vs Huntsville, AL
Moving from Columbus to Huntsville? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($333,537 → $316,645 median home) and taxes.
Columbus vs Huntsville 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 $99,132 in Huntsville, AL (−$868).
Livability — Columbus, OH: 69 · Huntsville, AL: 68 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,474 sqft in Columbus vs 3,236 sqft in Huntsville ($202 vs $155 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Columbus, OH | Huntsville, AL | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,288 | $16,620 | −$1,668 |
| Groceries | $4,706 | $4,729 | +$23 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $3,465 | +$440 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,884 | −$216 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $2,400 | +$1,100 |
| Taxes | $9,711 | $9,172 | −$539 |
| Total | $39,130 | $38,270 | −$860 |
Side by side
| Metric | Columbus, OH | Huntsville, AL |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.6 | 93.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.20% | 4.21% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.6% | 11.0% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 54 | 44 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.38 | $5.34 |
| Median home price | $333,537 | $316,645 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.4× | 4.0× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.2% | 0.7% |
| Price per square foot | $202 | $155 |
| Median rent | $1,524 | $1,385 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.8% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 9.25% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 5.00% |
| Property tax rate | 1.46% | 0.39% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,200 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $7,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 0.70% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $2,400 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $800 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 17.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 2.95 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 450 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 91 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 33 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |