City · Muscogee County, Georgia

Columbus, Georgia

Columbus is a city in Muscogee County, Georgia, part of the Columbus, GA-AL metro area. It has 203,711 residents. Columbus, Georgia has a quality-of-life score of 14 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,425 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Georgia it ranks #216 of 386 cities and towns. It ranks best on primary care physicians (high), drinking water violations (low) and comfortable days (high). It ranks worst on math scores (low), primary care shortage (high) and loneliness (high).

14Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,425 of 15,651 cities and towns
Georgia: #216 of 386 in GA
Population: 203,711 (2020-2024)
Land area: 216 mi²
Density: 940.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 1319000

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety7#14,605/15,637
Economy13#13,634/15,631
Housing45#8,259/14,977
Health18#12,727/15,609
Healthcare32#10,697/15,650
Environment36#9,854/15,453
Education24#11,944/15,649
Infrastructure33#10,482/15,650
Community14#13,528/15,651
Leisure & amenities70#4,720/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Columbus, Georgia ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Muscogee County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Primary care physicians · high108 /100k
87/100Georgia 67 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMuscogee County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Georgia 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMuscogee County value
Comfortable days · high31.3%
84/100Georgia 31.5%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationMuscogee County value
Natural hazard risk · low9.6
84/100Georgia 24.82025Federal Emergency Management AgencyMuscogee County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high1.8 /10k
82/100Georgia 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMuscogee County value
Average commute time · low20.9 min
82/100Georgia 28.3 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013

Weaknesses

Math scores · low2.50
3/100Georgia 2.92United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMuscogee County value
Primary care shortage · high18.0
5/100Georgia 8.2United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMuscogee County value
Loneliness · high38.7%
6/100Georgia 37.9%United States 33.2%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Firearm deaths · high24.8 /100k
6/100Georgia 16.7 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMuscogee County value
Homicide rate · high11.4 /100k
6/100Georgia 7.4 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMuscogee County value
Child poverty rate · high25.5%
7/100Georgia 16.9%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

New homes permittedWorsening
3.3 /1k (2021) → 1.3 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−60%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
78.4% (2015-2019) → 89.2% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,408 (2015-2019) → $58,073 (2020-2024)
+25%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
25.8% (2015-2019) → 30.5% (2020-2024)
+4.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateImproving
28.7% (2015-2019) → 25.5% (2020-2024)
−3.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Unemployment rateImproving
9.2% (2015-2019) → 6.3% (2020-2024)
−2.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Columbus, Georgia improved on 5 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved5

Unemployment−2.9 points9.2% → 6.3%
Bachelor's++4.7 points25.8% → 30.5%
Broadband+11 points78.4% → 89.2%
Child poverty−3.2 points28.7% → 25.5%
Household income+25%$46,408 → $58,073

Declined1

Price / income+0.3×3.0× → 3.3×

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Columbus, Georgia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	20.6 min2015-2019	20.9 min2020-2024	+0.3 min	Within the margin of error	44%
Bachelor's degree or higher	25.8%2015-2019	30.5%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Improved	65%
Broadband subscriptions	78.4%2015-2019	89.2%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	64%
Child poverty rate	28.7%2015-2019	25.5%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Improved	62%
Effective property tax rate	0.92%2015-2019	0.85%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	28%
High school diploma or higher	88.0%2015-2019	89.5%2020-2024	+1.5 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Home price to income ratio	3.0×2015-2019	3.3×2020-2024	+0.3×	Declined	62%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4982015-2019	0.4912020-2024	−0.007	Within the margin of error	57%
Median household income	$46,4082015-2019	$58,0732020-2024	+25%	Improved	44%
Poverty rate	20.7%2015-2019	19.0%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	59%
Public transit commuters	1.3%2015-2019	0.9%2020-2024	−0.4 points	Within the margin of error	21%
Rent as share of income	30.4%2015-2019	30.3%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	56%
Rent-burdened households	50.5%2015-2019	50.5%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	56%
Unemployment rate	9.2%2015-2019	6.3%2020-2024	−2.9 points	Improved	89%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	13.2%2015-2019	13.0%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	49%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Columbus, Georgia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Columbus, Georgia in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Columbus, Georgia itself moved +1.4 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

203,711 residents

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79
60–69

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

81,415 households (±740)

Columbus, Georgia
Georgia share

Under $25k22%17,693
$25k–50k22%17,793
$50k–75k18%15,060

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

81,415 households (±740)

Columbus, Georgia
Georgia share

Own51%41,390
Rent49%40,025

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+2.8 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

88,531 workers (±1,577)

Columbus, Georgia
Georgia share

Drive alone73%64,740
Carpool10%8,865
Public transit0.9%†766

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Columbus, GA-AL

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Muscogee County, the county holding most of Columbus's residents.

Muscogee County has 4,510 employer establishments, 223 for every 10,000 residents (0.90× the US rate of 248; 0.94× Georgia's), with 78,975 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,167. The Census Bureau also counts 16,480 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,510; 16,480 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 223; US 248 · Georgia 236
Paid employees: 78,975
Average annual pay: $53,167; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Muscogee County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	521	25.8	1.24×About typical	5,732	$69,099	908
Restaurants and other eating places	444	22	1.20×About typical	8,635	$19,111	74
Limited-service restaurants	250	12.4	1.54×More than typical	4,177	$17,189	28
Lessors of real estate	229	11.3	0.92×About typical	855	$57,897	1,282
Offices of physicians	226	11.2	1.73×More than typical	1,953	$91,115	139
Specialty trade contractors	170	8.4	0.54×Fewer than typical	1,648	$51,385	780
Religious organizations	158	7.8	1.41×More than typical	1,537	$22,556	—
Full-service restaurants	151	7.5	0.97×About typical	3,969	$21,509	26
Clothing and accessories stores	119	5.9	1.62×More than typical	1,350	$19,621	268
Offices of other health practitioners	108	5.3	0.88×About typical	829	$41,697	260
Services to buildings and dwellings	103	5.1	0.76×Fewer than typical	1,640	$32,340	1,386
Personal care services	101	5	1.05×About typical	407	$30,187	1,848

Rank places for an industry Open Muscogee County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 202,073 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $11.1M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Columbus, Georgia: $54.49 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $11.1M; −72% vs FY2025
Per resident: $54.49; US $1,994
Sole-source: 57%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Army$14.7M100%
Department of Defense Education Activity$941.6K8.5%
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement$671.9K6.1%
Defense Logistics Agency$659.7K5.9%
Department of Veterans Affairs$531.4K4.8%
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$496.9K4.5%
Federal Acquisition Service$386.7K3.5%
Office of Procurement Operations$10.2K0.1%

Top recipients

LEADER COMMUNICATIONS INC.$6.1M55%
NATIONAL INFANTRY MUSEUM FOUNDATION, INC.$3.2M29%
BECKMAN COULTER, INC$1.6M14%
GCI-SAC JV LLC$1.2M11%
YELLOWFIN TRANSPORTATION INC$1.1M10%

Spending by fiscal year

103.8MFY2017
70.9MFY2018
144.9MFY2019
140MFY2020
108.3MFY2021
70.9MFY2022
44.7MFY2023
43.8M

Top industries (NAICS)

Computer systems design and related services · 5415$6.1M55%
Museums, historical sites, and similar institutions · 7121$3.2M29%
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing · 3254$2.2M20%
Building equipment contractors · 2382$1.2M11%
School and employee bus transportation · 4854$1.1M10%
Offices of physicians · 6211

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Columbus, Georgia

CONTRACT IS TO REPAIR/REPLACE HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS IN BUILDINGS 3405 AND 3425 AT FORT BENNING GEORGIA.$30.6M
GCI-SAC JV LLC· Muscogee County, GA· Construction & real property· Sep 28, 2022 – May 21, 2026· W912HN22C4005
MEDICAL EXPENSES$21.6M
PARAGON BENEFITS, INC.· Muscogee County, GA· Professional services· Dec 19, 2019 – Jan 15, 2026· N0018920CZ004
FACILITY OPERATING SERIVCES - BASE YEAR$14.8M
NATIONAL INFANTRY MUSEUM FOUNDATION, INC.· Muscogee County, GA· Construction & real property· Jun 30, 2022 – May 20, 2026· W56HZV22CL030
BASE AWARD FUNDED FOR $5,764,808.00

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Columbus, Georgia, so they do not add up across cities.

Columbus, Georgia's figures are part of those of Muscogee County, GA ($28M in FY2026), never added to them: 40% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Columbus is mostly in Muscogee County.

See federal money in Muscogee County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Columbus, Georgia is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Muscogee County28100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Columbus, GA-AL16

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/1319000

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends