Columbia, Pennsylvania

Population

Growing. Up 1.1% since 2020.

10,314

people, the 67th-largest of Pennsylvania's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Pennsylvania's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

79.1%

of 2,473 jobs located in Columbia are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 90% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,075

a month. Pennsylvania's median is $1,209.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $2,414 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Lancaster County.

• $1,087 Tract 140
• $3,501 Tract 133.03

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

$1,119–$1,679

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,075 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 118 homes permitted, 2022–2025
• 25% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 98% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.4–0.5% to the 4,936 homes here.

20–25

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 23% less than Pennsylvania's.

$196,500

median home value in Columbia.

• $196,500 Columbia
• $254,500 Pennsylvania
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year