Population
Iowa City
75,264
Columbia
127,200
Median Income
Iowa City
$57,533
Columbia
$64,488
Home Value
Iowa City
$273,600
Columbia
$268,300
Rent
Iowa City
$1,094
Columbia
$1,067
Crime Rate
Iowa City
3.21
Columbia
3.49
Cost of Living
Iowa City
107.8
Columbia
108.5
Avg Temp
Iowa City
N/A
Columbia
N/A
Unemployment
Iowa City
4.2%
Columbia
3.9%
How Similar Are Iowa City & Columbia?
Columbia is Iowa City's #2 most similar city
6 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Iowa City
75,264
Columbia
127,200
Columbia has a 41% larger population than Iowa City.
Violent Crime
Iowa City
3.21
Columbia
3.49
Both cities have similar violent crime — just a 8% difference.
Property Crime
Iowa City
16.74
Columbia
23.18
Columbia has a 28% higher property crime than Iowa City.
Political Leaning
Iowa City
30.3%
Columbia
44.1%
Both cities lean Democratic, but Columbia has a stronger Democratic lean (31% difference).
Unemployment
Iowa City
4.2%
Columbia
3.9%
Both cities have similar unemployment — just a 8% difference.
Median Income
Iowa City
$57,533
Columbia
$64,488
Columbia has a 11% higher median income than Iowa City.
Home Values
Iowa City
$273,600
Columbia
$268,300
Both cities have similar home values — just a 2% difference.
Education
Iowa City
31.7%
Columbia
32.1%
Both cities have similar education — just a 1% difference.
Demographics
Iowa City
75.1%
Columbia
74.3%
Both cities have similar demographics — just a 1% difference.
Cost of Living
Iowa City
107.8
Columbia
108.5
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 1% difference.
6 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Iowa City and Columbia share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Iowa City
0
Columbia
Cost of Living & Affordability — Iowa City leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDIowa City scores 78.2 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 98.6 in Columbia. Columbia scores 124.7 on the housing index (100 = national avg) vs 139.6 in Iowa City. Iowa City scores 94.0 on the food index (100 = national avg) vs 99.3 in Columbia.
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 — Columbia leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbia has a median property tax of $2,478 vs $4,765 in Iowa City (92% lower). Columbia has a vacancy rate of 7.3% compared to 9.1% in Iowa City. Columbia has a single-family homes of 58.8% compared to 49.8% in Iowa City.
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Columbia leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSColumbia: 69,265 vs Iowa City: 45,100 for labor force. Columbia has a poverty rate of 20.0% compared to 26.3% in Iowa City. Iowa City has a work from home of 11.2% compared to 9.6% 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 — Iowa City leads
Source: FBI UCRIowa City has a murder rate (per 1k) of 0.00 compared to 0.10 in Columbia. Iowa City has a property crime clearance of 21.9% compared to 12.6% in Columbia. Iowa City has a burglary rate (per 1k) of 1.57 compared to 3.33 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 high school diploma or higher of 41.7% compared to 38.9% in Iowa City. Columbia has a bachelor's degree or higher of 32.1% compared to 31.7% in Iowa City.
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 127,200, about 1.7x the size of Iowa City (75,264). Iowa City skews younger with a median age of 26.3 vs 29.2.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Iowa City
Columbia
Healthcare
Source: CMS Hospital CompareIowa City: 5 vs Columbia: 3 for with emergency services. Columbia: 3.7 vs Iowa City: 3.6 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Iowa City leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSIowa City has a public transit of 6.7% compared to 1.2% in Columbia. Iowa City has a bicycle of 3.1% compared to 1.0% in Columbia. Columbia has a drive alone of 74.1% compared to 56.0% in Iowa City.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Iowa City, IA
Compare Iowa City 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.