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Mid-size city

Living in Columbia, MD

Columbia is a mid-size city of 104,338 people in Howard County, Maryland. It's about 15 miles from Baltimore, MD. Summer highs average 88°F and winter highs 43°F, with about 28 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $497k and rent runs about $2k a month.

104,338people
$497kTypical home
$2,042/moRent
88° / 43°Summer / winter
28"Snow
233Sunny days
136Rain/snow days

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Size & setting

  • Mid-size city of 104,338
  • Part of a metro area
  • About 3,267 people per sq mi
  • 15 mi to Baltimore, MD
  • 15 mi to Baltimore, MD
  • Has its own stores and services

Money

  • Typical home $497k (≈$3,137/mo)
  • Median rent $2,042/mo
  • Median household income $131k
  • Property tax about 1.2% of value
  • 4.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 88°F
  • Winter highs around 43°F
  • Muggy summers (dew point 65°F)
  • 233 sunny days a year (81 totally clear)
  • 132 cloudy days a year
  • 40 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 136 days a year with rain or snow
  • 28" of snow a year
  • 6 days a year with 1"+ of snow
  • 1 day a year over 100°F
  • 3 nights a year below 10°F
  • Breezy

Safety

  • Very low violent crime (109 per 100k), county-wide
  • Low property crime (1,460 per 100k), county-wide

People

  • Median age 39
  • 30% of households have kids
  • 17% are 65 or older
  • 64% have a college degree
  • Very diverse community
  • 8% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 30 min
  • 4% walk or take transit to work
  • 10 mi to BWI airport
  • 10 mi to BWI (major hub)
  • 9 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 65% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1983
  • 96% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Gently rolling terrain
  • Elevation 302 ft
  • 13 mi to the ocean
  • 189 mi to a big lake
  • 3 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 47 mi to the nearest ski area
  • 7 mi to the nearest campground
  • 97 golf courses within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 3,411 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • 376 bars within 25 mi
  • 923 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • 64 music venues & clubs within 25 mi
  • 183 museums within 25 mi
  • 54 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
  • 5 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the top 4% of Maryland districts (reading)
  • Grocery store in town
  • 1 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 12 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • Vet in town
  • Dog park in town
  • 5 congregations per 10k people
  • College in town

Politics

  • Howard County: D+42 in 2024
  • Maryland: D+29 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Moderate hurricane risk
  • High tornado risk
  • Very low wildfire risk
  • Very low earthquake risk
  • High flood risk
  • Very low drought risk
  • Moderate winter storm risk
  • Low heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

Places near Columbia

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