Nicknames for Columbus include the Indie Art Capital, Biggest Small Town in America and the truncation Cbus. The official moniker for Ohio is The Buckeye State.
Research website numbeo ranks Columbus in the top 3% compared to the 250 cities evaluated on its overall quality of life index at June 2020. Columbus scored well on index factors such as property price to income ratio (lowest 2%), purchasing power (strongest 4%), traffic commute time (fastest 9%), pollution (cleanest 14%) and health care (best 25%). On the negative side, Columbus rates relatively poorly for cost of living (highest 25%), climate (worst 33%) and safety (bottom 51%).
The yearly Ohio State Fair is hosted in Columbus and is one of America’s biggest state fairs.
Ohio State University in Columbia is one of the largest college campuses in the U.S. The Ohio Stadium on the Ohio State University’s campus is the world’s 7th-biggest non-racing stadium.
The Ohio Expo Center in Columbus is the site for the annual All-American Quarter Horse Congress, the world’s largest single-breed horse show.
Living up to its reputation as an independent arts mecca, Goodale Park in Columbus hosts its Community Festival (ComFest) over three days and billed as America’s greatest non-commercial festival.
Columbus has the largest metropolitan area in the United States lacking passenger railway services.
Guinness World Records documents Columbus as being the site for the heaviest single-lift bench press at 885 pounds and 2 ounces (401.5 kilograms), accomplished by American Blaine Sumner at the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus on March 5, 2016. At the time Sumner was 29 years old and weighed about 370 pounds (167.5 kilograms).
Columbus serves as headquarters for four large corporations recognized as belonging to the Forbes Global 2000 world’s biggest companies. These large businesses are electric utility American Electric Power; branded fashion retailer L Brands; bank holding company Huntington Bancshares; and analytical instruments maker Mettler-Toledo International.
From an international trade perspective, Ohio exported U$52.987 billion worth of goods around the globe in 2019. Its most valuable exports include civilian aircraft including parts (11.1% of Ohio’s global total), passenger motor vehicles (7.4%), soya beans (3.2%), digital processing units (2.5%), automotive body parts or accessories (2%), spark-ignition piston engines (1.9%), tobacco cigarettes (1%), and motor vehicle gear boxes (also 1%) according to United States Census Bureau data.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for Columbus, Ohio was 8.1% in July 2020, up from 3.6% one year earlier.
Capital Facts for Columbus, United States: Quick Reference
Famous People
Below, you will find 10 of the most famous people born in Columbus, United States.
- Simone Biles, Olympic gymnastics gold medalist (born Mar. 14, 1997)
- Nick Swisher, professional MLB baseball player (born Nov. 25, 1980)
- Bow Wow, rapper (born Mar. 9, 1987)
- Gary Levox, country singer (born Jul. 10, 1980)
- Sarah Fisher, race car driver (born Oct. 4, 1980)
- Brady Quinn, professional NFL football quarterback (born Oct. 27, 1984)
- Mike Matheny, professional baseball catcher & manager (born Sep. 20, 1970)
- Staciana Stitts, Olympic swimming gold medalist (born Sep. 12, 1981)
- Dwight Yoakam, country singer-songwriter & actor (born Oct. 23, 1956)
- Buster Douglas, heavyweight boxer (born Apr. 7, 1960)
Note: Data for our Famous People tab was sourced from Google searches of published Wikipedia articles specific to each person’s name.
Population
Demonym for a Columbus resident: Columbusite
Population: 922,223 (Columbus) at September 25, 2020
Density: 4,207 people per square mile (1,624 per square kilometer)
Population: 11,747,700 (Ohio) at September 25, 2020
Density: 287 people per square mile (111 per square kilometer)
Financial
GDP: US$129.328 billion in 2018 (Columbus)
GDP per person: $62,215
Note: The above GDP metrics are on a current basis and are in U.S. dollars.
Official currency used in Columbus: U.S. dollars
Geography
Capital landmarks: Central Ohio Fire Museum, Easton Town Center, Grange Insurance Audubon Center, Mapfre Stadium, Nationwide Arena, Northland Performing Arts Center, Ohio Stadium and the Schwartz Castle
Research
Research Sources:
Brookings Institution, Global Metro Monitor Report (includes GDP data).
Dilemma X, U.S. Census Bureau metropolitan population estimates July 1, 2016.
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Total Gross Domestic Product for Columbus, OH (MSA).
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, Unemployment Rate in Columbus, OH (MSA).
Forbes Global 2000, The World’s Biggest Public Companies.
Guinness World Records, Heaviest bench press (male).
Guinness World Records, Largest sea turtle ever.
Nations Online, Capital Cities of the USA.
Numbeo, Quality of Life Index by City.
Official Government Website, City of Columbus official website.
United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade: State by 6-Digit HS Code and Top Countries.
United States Census Bureau, State Population Totals Tables: 2010-2016.
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: Seasonally Adjusted Metropolitan Area Estimates.
U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Gross Domestic Product by Metropolitan Area, 2015 (Tables Only).
Wikimedia Commons, Columbus city flag.
Wikipedia, Columbus, Ohio.
Wikipedia, Columbus metropolitan area, Ohio.
Wikipedia, Ohio.
World Population Review, Columbus, Ohio Population.
Columbusites celebrate Independence Day as a national holiday each July 4.
Columbus occupies 219.22 square miles (567.77 square kilometers) of land area. The state capital’s population was 922.223 Columbusites at September 25, 2020.
At the state level, Ohio covers a land area of 40,948 square miles (106,156 square kilometers) home to a population of 11.7 million people.
Population density for Columbus averages 4,207 residents per square mile (1,624 per square kilometer).
Zooming out to Ohio state land boundaries, population density drops to an average 287 inhabitants per square mile (111 per square kilometer).
