A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Columbus$710/mo

Typical home $111K (Census) · tax rate 1.40% · or rent about $825/mo · Housing →

Irwin$1,080/mo

Typical home $161K (Census) · tax rate 1.77% · or rent about $1,125/mo · Housing →

The difference: $370 a month, about $4,400 a year, between Irwin and Columbus.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

ColumbusIrwin

Snow a year21″21″

January low18°F 16°F

July high87°F 85°F

Growing season (days)179d 188d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)50th 77th

Outdoors & history

ColumbusIrwin

Trails0 mi —

Conserved land0%—

Settled1835 —

Archive photos—1

Famous people born here—1

Community

ColumbusIrwin

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

182 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

ColumbusIL IrwinIL

Columbus ↔ Irwin182 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs Illinois average

ColumbusIrwin

People

Population 106Highest 78Lowest

Median age 36.4±12.1Lowest 7% below IL 38.1±6.6Highest about the IL average

Irwin and Columbus are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 28.3%±18.7Lowest IL: 21.8% 29.5%±23.5Highest IL: 21.8%

Irwin and Columbus are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 20.8%±25.7Highest IL: 17% 10.3%±48.2Lowest IL: 17%

Columbus and Irwin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 19.1%Lowest IL: 37.8% 30.2%Highest IL: 37.8%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 2.8%±13.1Highest IL: 6.3% 2.6%±17.4Lowest IL: 6.3%

Columbus and Irwin are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $75,000±$27kLowest 10% below IL $102,750±$26kHighest 23% above IL

Irwin and Columbus are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $111,400±$13kLowest 58% below IL $160,900±$28kHighest 39% below IL

Rentmedian gross, monthly $825±$200Lowest 35% below IL $1,125±$327Highest 12% below IL

Irwin and Columbus are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,556Lowest 71% below IL $2,850Highest 46% below IL

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 33.3%±100 IL: 47.9% 33.3%±100 IL: 47.9%

Below poverty line 10.4%Highest IL: 11.8% 3.8%Lowest IL: 11.8%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 85.7%Lowest IL: 67.1% 87.1%Highest IL: 67.1%

Typical home builtmedian year 1971Highest same as IL 1938Lowest 33 yrs older than IL

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 35 minHighest 25% above IL 27 minLowest about the IL average

Work from home 7.1%±13.6Lowest IL: 15.9% 16.3%±14.4Highest IL: 15.9%

Irwin and Columbus are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 0% 0%

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 13.8 miHighest 10.3 miLowest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.22Lowest 0.45Highest

Top workplaceoutside town Quincy (60%)Kankakee (29%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in IrwinFew work in Columbus

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0% 0%

Trailsmapped miles 0.0 mi 0.0 mi

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 mi —

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Highest 0Lowest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 50.1Lowest 108Highest

Illinois average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Columbus neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Columbus’s Town Square.

Irwin neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Irwin’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Columbus and Irwin

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Towns like Columbus

+ Compare

Ellsworth179 people · $121K homes

+ Compare

Jeisyville90 people · $90K homes

+ Compare

Media153 people · $90K homes

+ Compare

Coleta169 people · $112K homes

Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Illinois towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Columbus vs Irwin

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they part ways

A typical home costs $370 more a month in Irwin

What daily life feels like in each

182 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Columbus and Irwin

Towns like Columbus

Post to Columbus

Check your email