Compare / Columbus to Knoxville
Columbus, OH vs Knoxville, TN
Simple answer
You'd likely save $127 a month in Knoxville.
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 Census rent. Census median gross rent differs by $140, with Columbus higher.
Ohio taxes wages at a flat 2.75%. Tennessee has no tax on wages. Combined sales tax differs by 2.3 percentage points, higher in Tennessee. The effective property tax gap is 0.78 percentage points, higher in Ohio.
After a move from Ohio to Tennessee, 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 Columbus lines up with about $72,722 in Knoxville on the 2024 all-items price parity. Census median gross rent and the commute figures are 2024. Fair Market Rents are fiscal year 2027.
Columbus
Columbus, OH
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,602
- HUD area
- Columbus, OH HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,359
- All-items price parity
- 95.5
- Goods price parity
- 93.6
- Utilities price parity
- 95.5
- Mean commute
- 24.1 min
- Median household income
- $82,938
Knoxville
Knoxville, TN
- 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent
- $1,475
- HUD area
- Knoxville, TN HUD Metro FMR Area
- Census median gross rent
- $1,219
- All-items price parity
- 92.6
- Goods price parity
- 96.2
- Utilities price parity
- 71.9
- Mean commute
- 24.7 min
- Median household income
- $74,184
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.
$72,722
Salary in Knoxville that matches the 2024 all-items regional price parity.
$69,336
Gross salary in Knoxville whose after-tax pay buys the same basket, using price parities.
$69,054
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 | Ohio | Tennessee |
|---|---|---|
| State income tax on wages | 2.75% flat | No wage tax |
| Combined sales tax, Jan 1, 2026 | 7.3% | 9.6% |
| Effective property tax, ACS 2024 median / median | 1.22% | 0.45% |
On a $400,000 home, the state median effective rate implies about $4,899 a year in Ohio and $1,790 in Tennessee. That illustration is not a local bill. Childcare prices are not in the verified dataset for these metros.
Benefits if you land in Tennessee
Same household, $40,000 a year, scored once in Ohio and once in Tennessee. This is an illustration, not your application.
Food stamps (SNAP)
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
Medicaid and CHIP
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
WIC
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
School meals
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
LIHEAP
ColumbusMaybe
KnoxvilleMaybe
Earned Income Tax Credit
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
Child Tax Credit
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
Marketplace premium tax credits
ColumbusUnlikely
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
Lifeline phone and internet
ColumbusLikely eligible
KnoxvilleLikely eligible
SSI
ColumbusUnlikely
KnoxvilleUnlikely
| Program | Columbus | Knoxville |
|---|---|---|
| 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 Columbus the result is “Unlikely — Medicaid is the closer program.” In Knoxville it is “Likely inside the 2026 subsidy range.” Ohio expanded Medicaid, and this income is in the Medicaid range. Marketplace subsidies are usually not the program in that case.
Related comparisons
From Columbus
The eight largest 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent gaps from Columbus.
- Columbus and San Francisco · rent gap $2,095
- Columbus and San Jose · rent gap $1,670
- Columbus and Boston · rent gap $1,406
- Columbus and New York · rent gap $1,369
- Columbus and Los Angeles · rent gap $1,362
- Columbus and San Diego · rent gap $1,221
- Columbus and Miami · rent gap $962
- Columbus and Seattle · rent gap $947
Nearby metros
How the salary and tax math works · The reverse city order redirects to this address.