Providence, RI vs Columbus, GA
Moving from Providence to Columbus? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($524,867 → $209,527 median home) and taxes.
Providence 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 Providence, RI, you'd need about $87,519 in Columbus, GA (−$12,481).
Livability — Providence, RI: 58 · Columbus, GA: 76 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,524 sqft in Providence vs 4,892 sqft in Columbus ($328 vs $102 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Providence, RI | Columbus, GA | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $25,956 | $15,336 | −$10,620 |
| Groceries | $4,922 | $4,816 | −$106 |
| Transportation | $3,875 | $3,515 | −$360 |
| Utilities | $3,060 | $1,656 | −$1,404 |
| Insurance | $1,700 | $2,100 | +$400 |
| Taxes | $13,121 | $9,327 | −$3,794 |
| Total | $52,634 | $36,750 | −$15,884 |
Side by side
| Metric | Providence, RI | Columbus, GA |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 101.5 | 88.8 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.82% | 6.87% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 3.6% | 5.2% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $5.78 | $5.06 |
| Median home price | $524,867 | $209,527 |
| Home price ÷ income | 6.5× | 3.8× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | 3.1% | 3.0% |
| Price per square foot | $328 | $102 |
| Median rent | $2,163 | $1,278 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 11.4% | 8.9% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.00% | 7.38% |
| Capital gains tax | 5.99% | 5.39% |
| Property tax rate | 1.31% | 0.79% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $7,600 | $6,400 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $13,000 | $9,500 |
| Vehicle property tax | None | None |
| Avg commute (min) | 26 | 22 |
| Home insurance / yr | $1,700 | $2,100 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,100 | $1,900 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $900 | $700 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 28.3 | 15.4 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.35 | 3.15 |
| Natural gas / mo | $92 | $74 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $80 | $123 |
| Home internet / mo | $67 | $88 |
| Violent crime /100k | 240 | 370 |
| Avg summer high °F | 82 | 89 |
| Avg winter low °F | 21 | 34 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 47.5 | 50.4 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 36.6 | 2.2 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 56% | 60% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 4 | 2 |