AreaProfile

31906Columbus, Georgia

Area Profile

Income, jobs, climate, physical risk and development data for ZIP code 31906.

57
Area Score
Bottom 32% of 3,833 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
OpportunityTop 49% of 4,073 published ZIP areas55
Growth3366th of 3,947 published ZIP areas28
Housing affordability2417th of 4,553 published ZIP areas74
ClimateTop 45% of 4,621 published ZIP areas72
Physical resilienceTop 32% of 4,554 published ZIP areas73
Access4497th of 4,623 published ZIP areas49
Economic stability4441st of 4,591 published ZIP areas22
The quick read

Its Area Score of 57 places 31906 in the top 68% of published ZIP profiles.

At a glance

Population
20,400
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$44,965
Bottom 10% nationally
Density
2,968/sq mi
6.9 sq mi of land
Median age
38.0
2024 ACS 5-Year
City
Columbus
Georgia
Metro area
Columbus, GA-AL
Nearest major airport
DHN
84 mi · Dothan Rgnl
Median home value
$179,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.3% is lower than 59% of the 4,387 measured US ZIP areas.

Employment grew 1.0% over the past year, to 79,972 employed residents.

34% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 72% of measured US ZIP areas.

Median household income of $44,965 is below 90% of measured US ZIP areas.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$5,235$44,965Bottom 10%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$2,663$30,249Bottom 27%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate25.4%Top 11%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute23.6 minBottom 28%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher33.6%Top 28%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment79,972Top 32%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-0.1%Bottom 47%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)1.0%Top 10%June 2026
Labor force83,549Top 32%June 2026
Labor force participation55.6%Bottom 33%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$55,130Bottom 6%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$43,540Bottom 4%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.0%Bottom 48%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.3%Bottom 41%June 2026
Median household income, successive ACS releases
202120222023202445k34k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $44,965 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.
Largest occupations — Columbus, GA-AL
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers4,060$23,300
Retail Salespersons3,580$28,180
Cashiers2,900$26,980
Registered Nurses2,790$82,500
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand2,490$36,910
Customer Service Representatives2,150$37,330

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish labor-force data for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Columbus, GA, the city containing this ZIP code.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $923 takes 25% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 4.0 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
24.6%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
4.0×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$923
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$179,500
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income3.99Top 29%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate47.2%Bottom 8%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±50411,233Top 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$34$923Bottom 40%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$17,308$179,500Bottom 38%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income24.6%Top 16%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate21.9%Top 23%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
28/ 100
Ranks 3366 of 3,947 published city profiles

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

New construction is predominantly single-family: only 15% of permitted units are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 1.3 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US ZIP areas.

Units permitted
265
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.3
Bottom 28% nationally
Year over year
−5%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
15.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings

The Building Permits Survey is not published for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Columbus, GA, the city containing this ZIP code.

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 93°F and January a low of 38°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 48.8 inches.

30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station COLUMBUS METRO AP, 3.4 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND4.9"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation48.8"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall0.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low38°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high93°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing35°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

73 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are hurricane, tornado and lightning.

LightningElevated
HurricaneModerate
LandslideModerate
TornadoModerate
DroughtModerate

Low or minimal exposure: heat wave, inland flooding, earthquake, hail, strong wind, wildfire, ice storm, winter weather, cold wave.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. ZIP values are the land-area-weighted mean of the counties the ZIP Code Tabulation Area intersects. Expected annual loss is not allocated below county level. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 84 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Dothan RgnlDHN84 mi8,500 ft
Montgomery Rgnl (Dannelly Fld)MGM85 mi9,020 ft
Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta IntlATL86 mi12,390 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
57
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.

31906 vs Columbus

How this ZIP area compares with Columbus as a whole. Both figures come from the same ACS release, so the comparison is like for like.

31906
Columbus
Median household income
$44,965
vs
$58,073
Per capita income
$30,249
vs
$33,739
Population density
2,968/sq mi
vs
941/sq mi
Median home value
$179,500
vs
$193,900
Median gross rent
$923
vs
$1,106
Homeownership rate
47.2%
vs
50.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher
33.6%
vs
30.5%
Poverty rate
25.4%
vs
19.0%
Median age
38.0
vs
35.4

Some demographic statistics use Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, which approximate but do not exactly match USPS ZIP delivery geography. See the methodology for how AreaProfile maps between them.