Population
Gastonia
81,632
Columbia
138,019
Median Income
Gastonia
$60,554
Columbia
$55,653
Home Value
Gastonia
$250,000
Columbia
$243,500
Rent
Gastonia
$1,145
Columbia
$1,158
Crime Rate
Gastonia
8.49
Columbia
7.70
Cost of Living
Gastonia
107.3
Columbia
100.1
Avg Temp
Gastonia
N/A
Columbia
N/A
Unemployment
Gastonia
5.2%
Columbia
7.6%
How Similar Are Gastonia & Columbia?
Columbia is Gastonia's #19 most similar city
6 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Gastonia
81,632
Columbia
138,019
Columbia has a 41% larger population than Gastonia.
Violent Crime
Gastonia
8.49
Columbia
7.70
Both cities have similar violent crime — just a 9% difference.
Property Crime
Gastonia
35.14
Columbia
32.33
Both cities have similar property crime — just a 8% difference.
Political Leaning
Gastonia
62.1%
Columbia
31.8%
Gastonia leans Republican while Columbia leans Democratic.
Unemployment
Gastonia
5.2%
Columbia
7.6%
Columbia has a 32% higher unemployment than Gastonia.
Median Income
Gastonia
$60,554
Columbia
$55,653
Both cities have similar median income — just a 8% difference.
Home Values
Gastonia
$250,000
Columbia
$243,500
Both cities have similar home values — just a 3% difference.
Education
Gastonia
18.4%
Columbia
26.5%
Columbia has a 31% higher education than Gastonia.
Demographics
Gastonia
55.2%
Columbia
49.9%
Both cities have similar demographics — just a 10% difference.
Cost of Living
Gastonia
107.3
Columbia
100.1
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 7% difference.
6 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Gastonia and Columbia share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Gastonia
0
Columbia
Columbia leads in 4 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Columbia leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDColumbia has a fair market rent (2br) of $1,276 vs $1,686 in Gastonia (32% lower). Columbia has a fair market rent (1br) of $1,164 vs $1,538 in Gastonia (32% lower). Columbia scores 76.5 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 99.7 in Gastonia.
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 — Gastonia leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbia has a median property tax of $1,608 vs $2,355 in Gastonia (46% lower). Gastonia has a vacancy rate of 8.7% compared to 14.5% in Columbia. Gastonia has a single-family homes of 70.9% compared to 57.4% in Columbia.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Gastonia leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbia: 16 min vs Gastonia: 23 min for mean commute. Columbia: 76,809 vs Gastonia: 40,874 for labor force. Gastonia has a poverty rate of 14.3% compared to 23.3% in Columbia.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Columbia leads
Source: FBI UCRGastonia has a property crime clearance of 23.8% compared to 13.4% in Columbia. Gastonia has a murder rate (per 1k) of 0.05 compared to 0.10 in Columbia. Gastonia has a violent crime clearance of 45.6% compared to 34.1% in Columbia.
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 — Columbia leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauColumbia has a bachelor's degree or higher of 26.5% compared to 18.4% in Gastonia.
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 ACSColumbia has a population of 138,019, about 1.7x the size of Gastonia (81,632). Columbia skews younger with a median age of 28.7 vs 37.2.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Gastonia
Columbia
Healthcare
Source: CMS Hospital CompareGastonia: 5 vs Columbia: 4 for with emergency services. Columbia: 3.8 vs Gastonia: 3.2 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Columbia leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbia has a bicycle of 0.3% compared to 0.0% in Gastonia. Columbia: 16 min vs Gastonia: 23 min for mean commute time. Columbia has a public transit of 1.4% compared to 1.0% in Gastonia.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Gastonia, NC
Compare Gastonia 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.