Population
Birmingham
199,322
Topeka
126,103
Median Income
Birmingham
$44,376
Topeka
$55,902
Home Value
Birmingham
$138,600
Topeka
$130,600
Rent
Birmingham
$1,047
Topeka
$947
Crime Rate
Birmingham
12.48
Topeka
8.57
Cost of Living
Birmingham
85.2
Topeka
88.9
Avg Temp
Birmingham
N/A
Topeka
N/A
Unemployment
Birmingham
6.1%
Topeka
4.9%
How Similar Are Birmingham & Topeka?
Topeka is Birmingham's #7 most similar city
5 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Birmingham
199,322
Topeka
126,103
Birmingham has a 37% larger population than Topeka.
Violent Crime
Birmingham
12.48
Topeka
8.57
Birmingham has a 31% higher violent crime than Topeka.
Property Crime
Birmingham
40.31
Topeka
36.43
Both cities have similar property crime — just a 10% difference.
Political Leaning
Birmingham
44.2%
Topeka
48.8%
Both cities lean Democratic with similar vote shares — 9% difference.
Unemployment
Birmingham
6.1%
Topeka
4.9%
Birmingham has a 19% higher unemployment than Topeka.
Median Income
Birmingham
$44,376
Topeka
$55,902
Topeka has a 21% higher median income than Birmingham.
Home Values
Birmingham
$138,600
Topeka
$130,600
Both cities have similar home values — just a 6% difference.
Education
Birmingham
21.2%
Topeka
19.6%
Both cities have similar education — just a 8% difference.
Demographics
Birmingham
25.6%
Topeka
71.0%
Topeka's demographics is significantly higher than Birmingham's — 64% difference.
Cost of Living
Birmingham
85.2
Topeka
88.9
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 4% difference.
5 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Birmingham and Topeka share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Birmingham
0
Topeka
Topeka leads in 5 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Birmingham leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDTopeka has a fair market rent (1br) of $820 vs $1,155 in Birmingham (41% lower). Topeka has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,057 vs $1,266 in Birmingham (20% lower). Birmingham scores 83.9 on the food index (100 = national avg) vs 92.7 in Topeka.
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Topeka leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSTopeka has a vacancy rate of 9.4% compared to 18.7% in Birmingham. Birmingham has a median property tax of $930 vs $1,991 in Topeka (53% lower). Topeka has a owner-occupied of 59.1% compared to 45.1% in Birmingham.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Topeka leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSTopeka has a poverty rate of 15.6% compared to 25.2% in Birmingham. Birmingham: 97,022 vs Topeka: 62,868 for labor force. Topeka: 15 min vs Birmingham: 20 min for mean commute.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Topeka leads
Source: FBI UCRTopeka has a murder rate (per 1k) of 0.16 compared to 0.59 in Birmingham. Topeka has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.81 compared to 2.01 in Birmingham. Topeka has a violent crime clearance of 41.3% compared to 9.8% in Birmingham.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauBirmingham has a bachelor's degree or higher of 21.2% compared to 19.6% in Topeka. Topeka has a high school diploma or higher of 41.1% compared to 40.7% in Birmingham.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBirmingham has a population of 199,322, about 1.6x the size of Topeka (126,103). Birmingham skews younger with a median age of 35.9 vs 38.2.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Birmingham
Topeka
Healthcare — Topeka leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareTopeka: 4.0 vs Birmingham: 3.7 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Topeka leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBirmingham has a bicycle of 0.4% compared to 0.1% in Topeka. Birmingham has a public transit of 1.3% compared to 0.9% in Topeka. Topeka: 15 min vs Birmingham: 20 min for mean commute time.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Birmingham, AL
Compare Birmingham against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.