How serious are America’s mayors? · Incorporated city
Columbia, SC
144,788 people, 2024 · Census GEOID 4516000 · Census profile · mayors: being verified
Overall in 2023, Columbia ranked #265 of 340 cities and 12th of 14 in its peer group, on 9 of 9 measures. Weigh the measures yourself · how ranks are made
Its peer group is Columbia and the 13 cities most like it in 2005 (size, income, poverty, industry, growth, density, place), fixed since: Charleston SC, Beaumont TX, Augusta GA, North Charleston SC, Norman OK, Roanoke VA, Savannah GA, Kansas City KS, Peoria IL, Rockford IL, Knoxville TN, Lafayette LA, Killeen TX · on the map, and why
| Topline | 2005–2024 | Latest rank | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rankamong all cities with a score that year | #265 of 340 cities · 12th of 14 in its peer group · 2023 | #264 | #149 | #167 | #189 | #240 | #193 | #251 | #260 | #227 | #240 | #244 | #289 | #278 | #270 | #294 | #309 | #236 | #193 | #265 | #203 | |
| people · size, not ranked | 123,680 | 124,737 | 127,030 | 128,388 | 128,708 | 130,774 | 131,302 | 131,761 | 131,527 | 131,781 | 133,616 | 134,129 | 134,005 | 132,770 | 131,674 | 136,207 | 136,400 | 139,639 | 142,173 | 144,788 | ||
| net movers per 100 residents · estimate · higher is better | #44 of 340 cities · 2nd of 14 in its peer group | -0.1 | +0.9 | +1.5 | +0.9 | +0.8 | — | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.6 | +0.1 | +0.0 | +0.0 | -0.2 | -0.2 | +0.0 | +0.6 | +0.2 | +0.5 | |
| new homes per 1,000 residents · higher is better | #10 of 271 cities with data · 1st of 8 in its peer group with data | 5.3 | 8.4 | 9.4 | 6.7 | 2.4 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 3.6 | 1.4 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 12.5 | 15.3 | 11.3 | 14.8 | |
| rent as % of income · lower is better | #267 of 340 cities · 11th of 14 in its peer group | 21.8% | 20.2% | 22.6% | 22.8% | 23.4% | 24.3% | 23.8% | 22.6% | 23.9% | 24.7% | 24.5% | 21.9% | 24.7% | 24.7% | 23.0% | — | 26.5% | 24.1% | 27.3% | 27.1% | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #220 of 304 cities with data · 3rd of 14 in its peer group | 12.1 | 5.6 | 11.8 | 10.1 | 10.1 | 12.2 | 7.6 | 6.8 | 6.1 | 6.8 | 9.7 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 12.1 | 22.0 | 13.9 | 14.7 | 9.3 | 14.1 | 9.7 | |
| per 100,000 residents · lower is better | #267 of 295 cities with data · 10th of 13 in its peer group with data | 177.9 | 178.8 | 139.3 | 134.7 | 186.5 | 143.0 | 105.9 | 146.5 | 140.7 | 136.6 | 162.4 | 163.3 | 196.3 | 186.0 | 188.3 | 213.6 | 247.1 | 197.7 | 261.7 | 219.6 | |
| jobs · size, not ranked | 137,014 | 139,014 | 143,701 | 144,130 | 137,628 | 140,384 | 142,563 | 128,024 | 132,296 | 134,138 | 139,987 | 139,841 | 139,386 | 136,902 | 129,598 | 127,573 | 128,550 | 140,285 | 142,455 | — | ||
| points ahead of the metro · higher is better | #187 of 329 cities with data · 8th of 14 in its peer group · 2023 | -1.8 | -0.1 | +0.8 | +0.4 | -1.2 | +3.4 | -0.5 | -10.5 | +1.5 | -1.2 | +1.7 | -2.2 | -1.6 | -2.6 | -2.7 | -2.0 | +1.1 | +4.2 | -0.3 | — | |
| people · size, not ranked | — | — | — | — | — | — | 54,197 | 51,533 | 56,199 | 58,292 | 59,428 | 60,590 | 61,897 | 59,856 | 55,615 | — | 63,184 | 66,318 | 68,214 | 64,795 | ||
| % of workforce · lower is better | #131 of 340 cities · 5th of 14 in its peer group | — | — | — | — | — | — | 13.3% | 11.5% | 12.1% | 8.2% | 9.2% | 7.0% | 5.8% | 6.9% | 4.2% | — | 9.9% | 8.2% | 6.1% | 4.4% | |
| % of promises funded · not ranked: 38 cities report | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| surplus as % of revenue · higher is better | #181 of 314 cities with data · 9th of 14 in its peer group | 22% | 21% | 9% | 5% | 15% | 16% | 13% | 25% | 28% | 26% | 21% | 9% | 22% | 10% | 19% | 22% | 25% | 20% | 25% | 20% | |
| dollars per resident · lower is better | #278 of 314 cities with data · 13th of 14 in its peer group | $2,819 | $2,463 | $2,117 | $3,132 | $2,916 | $4,755 | $4,498 | $5,239 | $5,098 | $5,947 | $6,893 | $5,769 | $5,654 | $6 | $6,468 | $7,334 | $7,638 | $6,755 | $6,755 | $6,569 |
Click a row for its source and its rank in every year. 1st is best whichever way the measure points. A rank is out of all 340 cities, or out of its peer group of 14; where some had no value that year it says “with data” and counts only those. An em dash is a year the source does not hold for Columbia. A greyed homicide figure is a year the FBI holds as a transition year for this department. What each row is, and is not, is on the main page, with a link to every source in Sources.