What is the median rent in Columbia, CA?

Name: Median rent in Columbia, CA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Columbia, CA is $1,217 (±$373) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 288 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Columbia, the median gross rent went from $706 in 2015–2019 to $1,217 in 2020–2024 (+72.4%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,217 (±$373)
Rented homes: 288 (±105)
$2,000 or more: 15.6%
Since 2015–2019: +72.4%

How much rent costs in Columbia

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Columbia	Tuolumne County	California	United States
Less than $500	10.4% (±13.1 points)	10.2%	3.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	19.1% (±15.1 points)	19.6%	7.2%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	30.2% (±14.7 points)	30.5%	16.2%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	24.7% (±12.4 points)	25.7%	21.5%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	0.0% (±13.7 points)	8.3%	19.8%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	3.8% (±5.7 points)	2.0%	12.5%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	11.8% (±11.9 points)	3.6%	19.1%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,000 to $1,499, paid by 30.2% of renting households.

15.6% of rented homes in Columbia cost $2,000 or more a month.

Columbia against Tuolumne County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Columbia	Tuolumne County	California	United States
Median gross rent	$1,217 (±$373)	$1,302 (±$95)	$2,036 (±$5)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	288 (±105)	5,383 (±596)	5,783,331 (±22,650)	42,849,984

In Columbia, median gross rent is not measurably different from Tuolumne County ($1,302).

It is also lower than in California ($2,036).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

In Tuolumne County, Columbia ranks 8 of 9 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 857 of 1,010.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Columbia has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$706 (±$64)	$1,217 (±$373)	+72.4%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	27.5% (±11.0 points)	29.7% (±9.1 points)	+2.2 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	16.9% (±16.0 points)	8.1% (±13.0 points)	−8.8 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Columbia

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Columbia
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Columbia	—	$1,217 (±$373)	—
Sonora	3.8 mi	$1,238 (±$182)	Not measurably different
Jamestown	5.1 mi	$944 (±$242)	Not measurably different
East Sonora	5.7 mi	$1,309 (±$195)	Not measurably different
Phoenix Lake	5.8 mi	$1,313 (±$730)	Not measurably different
Murphys	7.4 mi	$1,523 (±$543)	Not measurably different
Mono Vista	7.9 mi	$2,104 (±$489)	Higher
Cedar Ridge	8.0 mi	$1,615 (±$244)	Not measurably different
Angels	8.0 mi	$1,833 (±$152)	Higher

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Mono Vista, CA ($2,104), Angels, CA ($1,833).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Tuolumne County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
2	Twain Harte	$1,893 (±$717)
3	Cedar Ridge	$1,615 (±$244)
4	Pine Mountain Lake	$1,406 (±$85)
5	Phoenix Lake	$1,313 (±$730)
6	East Sonora	$1,309 (±$195)
7	Sonora	$1,238 (±$182)
8	Columbia	$1,217 (±$373)
9	Jamestown	$944 (±$242)

Showing 8 of 9 places in Tuolumne County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Columbia is a census-designated place: an unincorporated community the Census Bureau draws for statistics, with no municipal government of its own.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Columbia

What is the average rent in Columbia, CA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Columbia is $1,217 (±$373) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Columbia?

In Columbia, the median gross rent went from $706 in 2015–2019 to $1,217 in 2020–2024 (+72.4%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Columbia cost more than $2,000 a month?

15.6% of rented homes in Columbia have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 10.4% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Columbia higher than in Tuolumne County?

In Columbia, median gross rent is not measurably different from Tuolumne County ($1,302).

It is also lower than in California ($2,036).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Columbia CDP, California (place:14904, in state:06).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.