Cost Of Living in Columbus, IL

Get crime, demographics and other data for any location in Columbus, IL

A+

13%

Overall NAT. AVG.

4%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

42%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Columbus	Illinois	National
Cost of living	87	96	100
Goods & Services	96	97	100
Groceries	95	98	100
Health care	104	95	100
Housing	58	95	100
Transportation	100	103	100
Utilities	113	89	100

See How Much House You Can Afford. Get Pre-Approved Today

Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Columbus is 10% lower than the Illinois average
The cost of living in Columbus is 13% lower than the national average
Columbus housing is 42% lower than the national average
Illinois general sales tax is 22% higher than the national average
Illinois state income tax is 91% higher than the national average

Most Affordable Places to Live in and Around Columbus

See all the best places to live around Columbus

Compare Columbus, IL Cost of Living

Write a review to give others more information about this area.

See all Columbus poll results

The best places in Illinois

Here are the best places to live in Illinois

Most Dangerous Cities In The US

See the best places to live in Columbus

These are the largest cities in Illinois

Salary Calculator

This is how much you would need to earn in

Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$76,250	$6,354	$1,779	$2,288
Renters	$30,938	$2,578	$722	$928

Illinois Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Illinois	6.25%	10.25%

Illinois Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Illinois	4.95%	4.95%

Goods & Services

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$18.13	$24.26	25.3%
Beauty Salon	$28.00	$45.56	38.5%
Toothpaste	$3.84	$3.70	3.8%
Shampoo	$1.30	$1.28	1.3%
Movie	$9.83	$12.13	19.0%
Bowling	$11.95	$18.00	33.6%

Groceries

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.55	$5.84	5.0%
Fried Chicken	$1.41	$1.57	10.6%
Milk	$4.72	$4.67	1.0%
Potatoes	$4.74	$4.93	4.0%
Pizza	$12.79	$12.09	5.8%
Beer	$9.83	$10.41	5.6%

Health Care

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$120.50	$125.68	4.1%
Doctor	$171.88	$135.78	26.6%
Dentist	$97.53	$113.29	13.9%
Ibuprofen	$10.43	$10.65	2.1%
Lipitor	$506.88	$468.60	8.2%

Housing

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$85,000.00	$184,700.00	54.0%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,420.60	$2,346.69	39.5%
Apartment Rent	$813.00	$949.00	14.3%

Transportation

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.37	$3.46	2.5%
Tire Balancing	$62.78	$59.92	4.8%

Utilities

Item	Columbus	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$229.59	$193.99	18.3%
Phone	$200.45	$192.25	4.3%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Plainville, IL	285	82	18.1%
Clayton, IL	585	82	18.1%
La Prairie, IL	64	82	17.9%
Lima, IL	105	83	17.0%
Loraine, IL	412	84	16.3%
Columbus, IL	80	87	13.3%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Woodlawn, AR	80	81	18.8%
Crozier, AZ	80	89	10.7%
Goodyears Bar, CA	80	102	1.5%
Rock Creek Park, CO	80	122	21.7%
Cedar Springs, GA	80	83	17.0%
Columbus, IL	80	87	13.3%