Washington, DC → Columbus, OH
Moving to Columbus costs you $251 a month
−$3,012 a year for the same registered nurse, the same household size, and the same number of bedrooms.
In 2022-2023, 481 households moved Washington → Columbus (avg AGI $78,345). 468 went the other way. The whole move →
| Per month | Washington | Columbus | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $9,667 | $7,562 | −$2,105 |
| Income and payroll tax | $2,752 | $1,881 | −$872 |
| Take-home pay | $6,914 | $5,681 | −$1,233 |
| Rent | $1,929 | $1,174 | −$755 |
| Getting around | $463 | $526 | +$63 |
| Groceries | $452 | $372 | −$80 |
| Healthcare | $508 | $419 | −$89 |
| Utilities | $283 | $233 | −$50 |
| Everything else | $395 | $326 | −$69 |
| Left over | $2,883 | $2,632 | −$251 |
To break even in Columbus, you'd need to earn
$95,500
Household gross, versus $116,000 today. That's the salary that leaves you exactly as much at the end of the month as Washington does now.
The tax difference alone
+$2,971
A year, in state and local income tax. Effective rates: 28.5% in Washington, 24.9% in Columbus.
More about Columbus
Washington, DC in full
Recession-resistant government and consulting pay, humid summers, real transit.
Columbus, OH in full
The most affordable large metro with a growing white-collar job base.
The reverse move
Same two cities, but starting from Columbus on Columbus wages.
Columbus → Washington →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.