What is the population of Columbia borough?

Columbia borough has 10,217 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #85 of 2,002 in Pennsylvania.

What is the median household income in Columbia borough?

Median household income in Columbia borough is $52,271 a year, 33.4% below the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Columbia borough?

Median gross rent is $1,064 a month and the median home value is $174,200, so rent absorbs about 24.4% of median household income.

Is Columbia borough affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 3.3× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Columbia borough is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 24.4% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

Aerial view of a dense city center, illustrating the US cities ZIP code directory

Pennsylvania · Census place 15384

Columbia, PA population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Columbia, Pennsylvania (Columbia, PA — Census place “Columbia borough”) is 10,217 residents, ranking #85 of 2002 places in Pennsylvania. Median household income is $52,271, the median home is worth $174,200 and median gross rent runs $1,064 a month. Looking for the Columbia Pennsylvania ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Columbia, PA: 17512.

Population: 10,217Columbia borough residents
Median household income: $52,271Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $174,200Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $1,064Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 45.4 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 52.2%Owner-occupied households

Columbia ZIP codes (Pennsylvania)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Columbia.

The Columbia PA ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

17512

What the numbers mean in Columbia borough

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Columbia borough median would spend about 24.4% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 3.3× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 17.4% of residents and 52.2% of households own their home.

Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year

Columbia borough, PA in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Columbia borough is a mid-size town in Pennsylvania, with 10,217 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #85 of 2,002 ranked by population — larger than 95% of them. The median age here is 45.4 years against 39.1 nationally, a markedly older profile that usually tracks retirees staying put and younger households leaving for work. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.

Households in Columbia borough earn a median of $52,271 a year, 33.4% below the national figure of $78,538 and 27% below the $71,118 median for the 982 Pennsylvania cities we cover. This figure covers the household, not the worker: two people on ordinary wages at one address outrank a single professional in the same table. Poverty reaches 17.4% of residents here, above the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Columbia borough is valued at $174,200, 42.6% below the national figure and 10% below the $193,200 peer median, while median gross rent runs $1,064 a month, 24.3% below the national figure, or roughly $12,768 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 24.4% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is within the standard affordability guideline. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 3.3×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 52.2% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. Gross rent folds in the utilities a tenant pays separately, so it is closer to the real monthly outlay than a headline rent figure.

No figure on this page is estimated by us; each one comes straight from the published ACS tables for this area. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.

Compare with nearby places

Places of similar size in Pennsylvania.

More Pennsylvania coverage.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Columbia borough?: Columbia borough has 10,217 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #85 of 2,002 in Pennsylvania.
What is the median household income in Columbia borough?: Median household income in Columbia borough is $52,271 a year, 33.4% below the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Columbia borough?: Median gross rent is $1,064 a month and the median home value is $174,200, so rent absorbs about 24.4% of median household income.
Is Columbia borough affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 3.3× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Columbia borough is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 24.4% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Columbia borough data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.