Columbia is home to 6,632 people in Mississippi. 15% of adults hold a bachelor's degree, below the 36% national rate. Home values have more than doubled since 2000, reaching $131,700. 0% of people here were born outside the United States. The poverty rate is 24.5%, above the 12.5% national rate. That trails the Mississippi median by roughly 32%.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $38,507, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 41.4
US median: 38.9
Less educated
15% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Less affordable
home values up 28%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Columbia
What changed most since 1990
White share69.5% → 59.6%(−9.9 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Black share28.6% → 35.8%(+7.2 pts)US over the same years: +0.2 pts
Median home value (2024 dollars)$98,163 → $131,700(+34%)US over the same years: +67%
Its weight in Marion County
Columbia's population equals 27% of Marion County's. Its number of foreign-born residents equals 3.2% of the county's. Its number of households without a car equals 67% of the county's.
Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.
Section 09 · Service history
Veterans
Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)18.2%(52)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)11.2%(32)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era23.1%(66)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War3.1%(9)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0%(0)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 286 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Over time
Columbia, decade by decade
Columbia population, inflation-adjusted income and home value, education, and diversity by year
Year
Population
Median household income
Median home value
Bachelor's degree+
Diversity score
1990
6,815
$35,823
$98,163
13.3%
54.4
2000
6,603
$35,785
$102,741
16.3%
61.0
2010
6,582
$45,957
$121,847
18.4%
66.5
2020
5,864
$29,068
$96,721
15.2%
68.8
2024
6,632
$38,507
$131,700
14.8%
64.5
Census years come from the decennial census and the latest year from the American Community Survey, so part of any change between those two rows can reflect the different surveys. Dollar figures are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; a figure ending in "+" was at the Census Bureau's reporting cap that year. The diversity score runs from 0 to 100; see how it's calculated.
