Columbia vs Bethesda
Columbia, MD compared with Bethesda, MD · 20 miles apart
Columbia has 104,338 residents to Bethesda’s 69,397. Columbia comes out ahead on median rent, homeownership, price to income. Bethesda does better on median household income, average commute, bachelor's degree +.
| Columbia, MD | Bethesda, MD | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 104,338 | 69,397 |
| Density (per sq mi) | 3,267 | 5,231 |
| Median household income | $131,490 | $192,237 |
| Median home value | $497,400 | $1,169,900 |
| Median rent | $2,042 | $2,469 |
| Homeownership | 64.8% | 64% |
| Average commute | 27.9 min | 27.7 min |
| Median age | 39.4 | 42.8 |
| Bachelor's degree + | 63.6% | 87.1% |
| Poverty rate | 7.5% | 4.3% |
| Unemployment | 4.2% | 3.1% |
| Price to income | 3.8× | 6.1× |
Highlighted where one city is clearly better on that measure. Population, density, home value and median age carry no highlight — a higher number there is good or bad depending on what you want.
Full profiles
- Columbia, MDClimate, crime, housing
- Bethesda, MDClimate, crime, housing