on $100k a year, leaving New York

change
Columbus, OH cityscape

instead of new york

Columbus

oh · metro 2.2M

a dispatch from

columbus

OH

39.96°N

83.00°W

Columbus is Ohio State on autumn Saturdays (the Horseshoe holds 100,000+ and they all wear scarlet), German Village's cobblestone streets and brick cottages, and a Short North gallery scene that punches well above its weight. It's quietly become a test market for the rest of America because the demographics line up so neatly. The food scene leans young, weird, and good. 'Buckeyes' here can mean either the football team or the chocolate-peanut-butter candy.

metro2.2M

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$2,380

below New York's monthly cost

Move to Columbus and the monthly math gets easier. New York's rent is the headline; Columbus's is a footnote.
landable, recorded on the columbus entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,511/mo

55% cheaper than New York(vs $3,329/mo)

02state income tax

3.99%

$562/mo less in state tax than New York

vs 10.73% in New York

03after rent

$6,490/mo

$2,380 more than New York

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$350k

53% cheaper than New York

vs $739k in New York

05metro size

2.2M

vs 19.5M in New York

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

171

pleasant days a year, in columbus.

New York only manages 171 of those.

New York hosts 33.7× more events.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

57/100

27% lower than New York

vs 78/100 in New York

Closest outdoor draw: Alum Creek State Park, 16.2 mi.

·walk score®

85/100

15% lower than New York

vs 100/100 in New York

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

32

85% fewer than New York

vs 215 nonstops in New York

04 · see also

neighbors of columbus on the map of tradeoffs:

compare columbus with: