ColumbiaME
A town of 435.
Is Columbia a good place to live?
Only 6 of the 144 Maine towns we compare have a lower typical home value than Columbia. The biggest park or preserve is Great Heath Public Reserved Land, at 364 acres. Columbia has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
Columbia lives by the ocean
Coastal flooding makes up 20% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Moving to Columbia: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Columbia, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Columbia.
A typical Columbia home is worth about $170K
The typical Columbia home is worth about $170,000, down 2.3% in a year, 59% below the Maine typical home. Columbia’s median rent is $894 a month, against $1,106 a month in Maine’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns.
| Columbia | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $894 a month | $1,106 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 82% | 81% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Columbia has 0.7 jobs for every working resident, so most commute out
Most working residents leave Columbia for work: only 4% work in town. Columbia’s average trip to work is 31 minutes, above both the Maine town median (25 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Since 2013, Columbia has added 35 jobs, to 110 in 2023.
| Columbia | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $78,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.3% | 12% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Four seasons and pleasant summers in Columbia
Columbia has cold winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Columbia’s July high is 78°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
A larger share of adults sleep under 7 hours in Columbia than in most of Maine or the rest of the country
39% of Columbia adults sleep under 7 hours. Among 144 Maine towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who get no exercise outside work than Columbia. 19% of Columbia adults smoke cigarettes.
| Columbia | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 23% | 25% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 35% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | Columbia | ME |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 26.2% | 14.8% |
| More adults who get no exercise | 31.7% | 23.1% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 14% | 10.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Moderate risk in Columbia, with hurricanes at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 54% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Columbia | Maine towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.5% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Great Heath Public Reserved Land | — | 364 |
| 2. Saco Falls Town Park | — | 7 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about Columbia
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Columbia; the nearest are
About 9 of every 100 Columbia residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Maine.
435 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
About Columbia
Town in Maine, United States
Columbia is a town in Washington County, Maine, United States. The population was 435 at the 2020 census. Columbia was first settled by Europeans in the 1750s. Until 1863 it and its Washington County neighbor Columbia Falls, Maine on the Pleasant River when Columbia Falls formed its own town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 37 sq mi
- Elevation
- 148 ft
- Area code
- 207
Questions about Columbia
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Columbia, ME a good place to live?
Columbia has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.