Augusta vs Columbus leftover
Moving to Columbus costs you $60 a month
$2,013/mo leftover in Columbus vs $2,073 in Augusta after tax and rent ($60 less). −$720 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms. Not a cost-of-living index.
Augusta leftover
$2,073
a month after tax and rent
Columbus leftover
$2,013
−$60 vs Augusta
Compare Augusta to another metro
Same paycheck. Try a different city next to Augusta.
Monthly gap
Augusta → Columbus
$60
less / month in Augusta
$2,013 in Columbus · $2,073 in Augusta · One adult, renting a 1-bedroom
Home
Only when you tap. We match the nearest metro and don't keep the coordinates.
Destination
In 2022-2023, 28 households moved Augusta → Columbus (avg AGI $46,143). 31 went the other way. The whole move →
−$60 / mo
| Per month | Augusta | Columbus | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $6,792 | $6,574 | −$218 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,615 | $1,540 | −$76 |
| Take-home pay | $5,176 | $5,034 | −$142 |
| Rent | $1,134 | $1,063 | −$71 |
| Getting around | $575 | $560 | −$15 |
| Groceries | $385 | $386 | +$1 |
| Healthcare | $433 | $434 | +$1 |
| Utilities | $241 | $241 | $0 |
| Everything else | $337 | $337 | $0 |
| Left over | $2,073 | $2,013 | −$60 |
To break even in Columbus, you'd need to earn
$80,000
Household gross, versus $81,500 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Augusta does now.
The tax difference alone
+$136
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 23.8% in Augusta, 23.4% in Columbus.
More about Columbus
Augusta, GA in full
A flat 5.19% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,350 and 218 sunny days; commutes average 24 minutes.
Columbus, GA in full
A flat 5.19% state income tax, a median 2-bedroom asking rent of $1,265 and 222 sunny days; commutes average 22 minutes.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Columbus on Columbus wages.
Columbus → Augusta →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in Columbus than Augusta?
A one-bedroom is about $1,134 in Augusta versus $1,063 in Columbus. On a one-adult, one-bedroom household, leftover is about $60 a month lower in Columbus. Change the job or household on the comparison to see your number.
Does Columbus have state income tax?
Columbus is in Georgia, which taxes wage income.
What changes if you move from Augusta to Columbus?
Take-home pay is recalculated under Georgia tax, rent is priced at the same bedroom count, and leftover is the gap. The from-to page also lists IRS households that already made the move, when that data exists.
Leftover is take-home after federal, state and city wage tax, minus asking rent at the bedroom count you set, minus a modelled month of groceries, utilities, healthcare, transport and childcare. It is not a cost-of-living index and not a moving quote. The dollar gap between Augusta and Columbus moves when you change the job, remote versus local pay, or bedrooms. How the math works · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Rent is Zillow's asking rent for each metro; taxes and living costs are modelled. An estimate, not a quote or tax advice. How this is calculated.