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CityLedger

Columbus vs Denver

Metro-area medians — Columbus, OH Metro Area vs Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Columbus comes out ahead, winning 6 of the 10 clearly-decided measures.

Columbus is about 11% cheaper to live in, while Denver households earn about 30% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Denver.

For your salary & household

Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.

Columbus, OH
$59,967
take-home / yr · 20% to tax
$62,813
real value after local prices
Denver, CO
$58,707
take-home / yr · 22% to tax
$55,498
real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Columbus leaves you about $7,316/yr better off after tax and local prices.

Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.

Measure
Columbus
Denver
Livability (CityLedger)
63/100
83/100
Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
95.5
105.8
Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
$86,874
$102,140
Median household income
$82,938
$108,046
Median rent
$1,359/mo
$1,943/mo
Median home value
$334,800
$631,000
Unemployment
3.8%
4.2%
Bachelor's degree or higher
40.3%
51.6%
Average commute
24.1 min
27.7 min
Air quality (median AQI)
54
64
Avg temperature
54°F
50°F

Choose Columbus for

  • + Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
  • + Median rent
  • + Median home value
  • + Unemployment
  • + Average commute
  • + Air quality (median AQI)
Full Columbus profile →

Choose Denver for

  • + Livability (CityLedger)
  • + Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
  • + Median household income
  • + Bachelor's degree or higher
Full Denver profile →

Columbus vs Denver — frequently asked

Is Columbus cheaper than Denver?
Columbus is cheaper: its overall cost of living runs about 11% below Denver's (BEA Regional Price Parities).
Which has higher household income, Columbus or Denver?
Denver has the higher median household income — $108,046 versus $82,938 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 30% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Columbus or Denver?
A paycheck stretches further in Denver. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $102,140 there versus $86,874 in Columbus.
Which has cheaper rent, Columbus or Denver?
Columbus has cheaper rent — a median of $1,359/mo versus $1,943/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).