Cost of living in Columbia, Missouri
Simple answer
Typical rent is $1,097 a month.
Columbia is a city in Missouri. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $66,498 a year.
- People
- 128,548
- Census average, 2020–2024
- Typical rent
- $1,097
- Median gross rent, includes utilities
- Typical pay
- $66,498
- Median household income, yearly
- Typical home
- $284,600
- Median home value
- 2-bedroom fair rent
- $1,076
- Columbia, MO HUD Metro FMR Area
Columbia, Missouri has about 128,548 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.
A typical home is worth about $284,600.
HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Boone County is $1,076 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Columbia. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.
In the Columbia, MO metro area, prices sit at 89.4 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.
Missouri taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 8.4% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Columbia's exact store tax.
Some places in Missouri add a local wage tax. In 2023 the state average was about 0.18% of income. That is not a Columbia bill.
In July 2026, a typical Missouri home paid 16.09¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Columbia's bill.
EIA did not publish a 2025 all-grades gas price for Missouri in the table we use.
Among 350 places we list in Missouri with a rent figure, 98 have higher typical rent than Columbia.
Nearby places
- Ashland
Typical rent $1,206
Compare with Columbia - Hallsville
Typical rent $1,127
Compare with Columbia - Centralia
Typical rent $685
Compare with Columbia - Fulton
Typical rent $836
Compare with Columbia - Boonville
Typical rent $767
Compare with Columbia - New Franklin
Typical rent $679
Compare with Columbia - Auxvasse
Typical rent $568
Compare with Columbia - Holts Summit
Typical rent $1,122
Compare with Columbia
EBT nearby
USDA has a live map of stores that take SNAP. We did not copy that store list here. The downloadable file is a history file for 2005 through 2025, so the live map is the one to use.
Locator page updated 2026-09-11. Last checked 2026-10-16.
Food stamps (SNAP) tools in Missouri
Bigger places in Missouri
Census 2020-2024. HUD rents for October 2026–September 2027. BEA prices for 2024. Taxes as of January 1, 2026. Checked 2026-10-16. 15,000 places are in this guide.