Columbia is a place where college students are a big part of the character and culture of the town. Small towns have often struggled with declining populations over the past few decades, but the presence of such a large college student population has helped Columbia to fight this trend. Not only does the college population add spending and jobs to local economy, but it also contributes a very tangible, youthful energy to the town.
Columbia’s overall crime rate ranks among the lowest in the nation, making it a very safe place to live.
Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of Columbia spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 17.93 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the city are less than they would otherwise be.
Columbia is a small city, and as such doesn't have a public transit system that people use to get to and from their jobs every day.
The education level of Columbia citizens, measured as those with bachelor's degrees or advanced degrees, is similar to the national average for all American cities and towns. 19.38% of adults 25 and older in Columbia have a college degree.
The per capita income in Columbia in 2022 was $25,563, which is middle income relative to Kentucky, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $102,252 for a family of four. However, Columbia contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
The people who call Columbia home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Columbia residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Columbia include English, German, Irish, European, and Scots-Irish.
The most common language spoken in Columbia is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Polish.
