Population
Columbus
906,480
Pittsburgh
303,620
Median Income
Columbus
$65,327
Pittsburgh
$64,137
Home Value
Columbus
$234,500
Pittsburgh
$193,200
Rent
Columbus
$1,224
Pittsburgh
$1,221
Crime Rate
Columbus
4.35
Pittsburgh
4.28
Cost of Living
Columbus
110.5
Pittsburgh
104.6
Avg Temp
Columbus
53°F
Pittsburgh
N/A
Unemployment
Columbus
5.1%
Pittsburgh
5.9%
How Similar Are Columbus & Pittsburgh?
Pittsburgh is Columbus's #15 most similar city
3 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Columbus
906,480
Pittsburgh
303,620
Columbus (906,480) is about 3.0x larger than Pittsburgh (303,620).
Violent Crime
Columbus
4.35
Pittsburgh
4.28
Both cities have similar violent crime — just a 1% difference.
Property Crime
Columbus
26.53
Pittsburgh
22.80
Columbus has a 14% higher property crime than Pittsburgh.
Political Leaning
Columbus
35.3%
Pittsburgh
39.4%
Both cities lean Democratic, but Pittsburgh has a stronger Democratic lean (10% difference).
Unemployment
Columbus
5.1%
Pittsburgh
5.9%
Pittsburgh has a 15% higher unemployment than Columbus.
Median Income
Columbus
$65,327
Pittsburgh
$64,137
Both cities have similar median income — just a 2% difference.
Home Values
Columbus
$234,500
Pittsburgh
$193,200
Columbus has a 18% higher home values than Pittsburgh.
Education
Columbus
25.4%
Pittsburgh
32.6%
Pittsburgh has a 22% higher education than Columbus.
Demographics
Columbus
53.3%
Pittsburgh
63.7%
Pittsburgh has a 16% higher demographics than Columbus.
Cost of Living
Columbus
110.5
Pittsburgh
104.6
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 5% difference.
3 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Columbus and Pittsburgh differ in most key areas.
At a Glance
0
Columbus
0
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh leads in 6 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Pittsburgh leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDPittsburgh scores 118.6 on the housing index (100 = national avg) vs 132.7 in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a fair market rent (1br) of $1,077 vs $1,194 in Columbus (11% lower). Pittsburgh has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,299 vs $1,430 in Columbus (10% lower).
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 — Pittsburgh leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSPittsburgh has a median property tax of $1,853 vs $3,165 in Columbus (71% lower). Columbus has a vacancy rate of 8.0% compared to 13.8% in Pittsburgh. Columbus has a median home value of $234,500 vs $193,200 in Pittsburgh (21% higher).
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Columbus leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbus: 512,498 vs Pittsburgh: 170,736 for labor force. Pittsburgh has a work from home of 20.4% compared to 16.1% in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a per capita income of $43,590 vs $37,189 in Columbus (15% higher).
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Pittsburgh leads
Source: FBI UCRPittsburgh has a burglary rate (per 1k) of 2.33 compared to 4.05 in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a violent crime clearance of 41.4% compared to 21.8% in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a property crime clearance of 6.4% compared to 3.6% in Columbus.
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 — Pittsburgh leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauPittsburgh has a bachelor's degree or higher of 32.6% compared to 25.4% in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a high school diploma or higher of 48.8% compared to 42.1% in Columbus.
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 ACSColumbus has a population of 906,480, about 3x the size of Pittsburgh (303,620).
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Columbus
Pittsburgh
Healthcare — Pittsburgh leads
Source: CMS Hospital ComparePittsburgh: 5 vs Columbus: 4 for with emergency services.
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Pittsburgh leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSPittsburgh has a public transit of 12.4% compared to 2.1% in Columbus. Pittsburgh has a bicycle of 1.1% compared to 0.4% in Columbus. Columbus has a drive alone of 70.1% compared to 48.3% in Pittsburgh.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Columbus, OH
Compare Columbus 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.