Columbus, OH vs Tucson, AZ
Moving from Columbus to Tucson? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($333,537 → $343,580 median home) and taxes.
Columbus vs Tucson 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 $100,319 in Tucson, AZ (+$319).
Livability — Columbus, OH: 69 · Tucson, AZ: 70 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 2,474 sqft in Columbus vs 2,693 sqft in Tucson ($202 vs $186 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Columbus, OH | Tucson, AZ | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $18,288 | $17,676 | −$612 |
| Groceries | $4,706 | $4,841 | +$134 |
| Transportation | $3,025 | $3,960 | +$935 |
| Utilities | $2,100 | $1,668 | −$432 |
| Insurance | $1,300 | $1,800 | +$500 |
| Taxes | $9,711 | $7,594 | −$2,117 |
| Total | $39,130 | $37,539 | −$1,592 |
Side by side
| Metric | Columbus, OH | Tucson, AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 94.6 | 94.9 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.20% | 5.87% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.6% | 3.5% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 54 | 56 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.38 | $5.40 |
| Median home price | $333,537 | $343,580 |
| Home price ÷ income | 4.4× | 5.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 1.2% | -2.1% |
| Price per square foot | $202 | $186 |
| Median rent | $1,524 | $1,473 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 10.0% | 9.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.24% | 8.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 3.50% | 2.50% |
| Property tax rate | 1.46% | 0.84% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,400 | $6,300 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $10,000 | $12,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | 1.68% |
| Avg commute (min) | 24 | 25 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $1,300 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $600 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 19.5 | 15.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.25 | 3.60 |
| Violent crime /100k | 300 | 430 |
| Avg summer high °F | 85 | 104 |
| Avg winter low °F | 20 | 41 |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 2 | 2 |