Compare / Colorado Springs to Columbia
Colorado Springs, CO vs Columbia, SC
Simple answer
You'd likely save $395 a month in Columbia.
This is the HUD 2-bedroom fair-market rent for October 2026 through September 2027. It is not your lease.
The largest cost gap in this pair is housing prices. The BEA housing price parity differs by 36.8 points (Colorado Springs 116.2, Columbia 79.5).
Colorado taxes wages at a flat 4.40%. South Carolina taxes wages at rates up to 6.00%. Combined sales tax differs by 0.4 percentage points, higher in Colorado. The effective property tax gap is 0.05 percentage points, higher in Colorado.
After a move from Colorado to South Carolina, these benefit results change for a family of four at $40,000 and a single adult at $18,000: Marketplace premium tax credits, Medicaid and CHIP.
A $75,000 salary in Colorado Springs lines up with about $69,753 in Columbia on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs, CO
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,621
- HUD area
- Colorado Springs, CO HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,761
- All-items price parity
- 100.7
- Goods price parity
- 96.1
- Utilities price parity
- 83.2
- Mean commute
- 24.8 min
- Median household income
- $90,760
Columbia
Columbia, SC
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,226
- HUD area
- Columbia, SC HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,257
- All-items price parity
- 93.7
- Goods price parity
- 96.3
- Utilities price parity
- 88.3
- Mean commute
- 25.8 min
- Median household income
- $70,788
Equivalent salary
The first number keeps the same place in the national price level. The second also runs 2026 federal income tax, employee Social Security and Medicare, and a simplified state income tax. Groceries use the BEA goods price parity, not a grocery receipt.
$69,753
Salary in Columbia that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$69,753
Gross salary in Columbia whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$56,724
Scales the salary by the ratio of HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rents. Rent is not the whole budget.
Taxes on the two sides of the move
| Tax | Colorado | South Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | 4.40% flat | up to 6.00% |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 7.9% | 7.5% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 0.49% | 0.45% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $1,969 a year in Colorado and $1,786 in South Carolina. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in South Carolina
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in Colorado and once in South Carolina. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
WIC
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
School meals
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
LIHEAP
Colorado SpringsMaybe
ColumbiaMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
Colorado SpringsUnlikely
ColumbiaLikely eligible
Lifeline phone and internet
Colorado SpringsLikely eligible
ColumbiaLikely eligible
SSI
Colorado SpringsUnlikely
ColumbiaUnlikely
| Program | Colorado Springs | Columbia |
|---|---|---|
| Food stamps (SNAP) | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Medicaid and CHIP | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| WIC | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| School meals | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| LIHEAP | Maybe | Maybe |
| Earned Income Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Child Tax Credit | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| Marketplace premium tax credits | Unlikely | Likely eligible |
| Lifeline phone and internet | Likely eligible | Likely eligible |
| SSI | Unlikely | Unlikely |
Marketplace premium tax credits changes. In Colorado Springs the result is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” In Columbia it is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” Colorado expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From Colorado Springs
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Colorado Springs.
- Colorado Springs and San Francisco · rent gap $2,076
- Colorado Springs and San Jose · rent gap $1,651
- Colorado Springs and Boston · rent gap $1,387
- Colorado Springs and New York · rent gap $1,350
- Colorado Springs and Los Angeles · rent gap $1,343
- Colorado Springs and San Diego · rent gap $1,202
- Colorado Springs and Miami · rent gap $943
- Colorado Springs and Seattle · rent gap $928
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.