Photo: Akhenaton06 · CC BY-SA 3.0Living in Columbia, SC: what to set up and who to call
The Columbia City of (Sc4010001) water system reported one health-based violation to EPA in the last five years: chlorite, beginning Dec 2024. Columbia has its own train station.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Columbia, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Columbia.
Power comes from Dominion Energy South Carolina
Dominion Energy South Carolina (Dominion Energy South Carolina, Inc), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Columbia. Its homes paid an average of 16.4¢ per kWh in 2025, about $169 a month (its average across South Carolina).
Start or move service: sceg.com · (800) 251-7234
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from Columbia City of (Sc4010001) water system
The Columbia City of (Sc4010001) water system supplies Columbia: about 97% of residents live in its service area. About 3% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws surface water and serves 354,068 people in all.
1 health-based violation reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026: chlorite, beginning Dec 2024. 86% of the 84 systems serving 250,001–500,000 people had none.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2021–Dec 2023, was 5.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. That’s higher than 88% of similar systems’ latest results.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. SC4010001.
5 home internet providers serve Columbia
93% of 37,786 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 53% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spectrum | Cable, Fiber | 96% | 1,000/35 |
| AT&T | DSL, Fiber, Fixed wireless | 90% | 5,000/5,000 |
| lumos | Fiber | 26% | 5,000/5,000 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 84% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 66% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
Trash and recycling in Columbia
Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Columbia, from the town’s own site.
We couldn’t find pickup days or drop-off hours. Check publicworks.columbiasc.gov →
From publicworks.columbiasc.gov, cityclerk.columbiasc.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026; pages dated 2025-07-11, 2026-07-14. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Most of Columbia (63%) is in Richland School District 2; parts are in Richland School District 1 (34%) and Lexington School District 5 (3%).
BSchool gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jan 2024; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Columbia spans 13 ZIP codes
ZIP codes where Columbia residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Columbia | ZIP’s residents in Columbia |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29205 | Columbia, SC | 16% | 92% |
| 29201 | Columbia, SC | 16% | 84% |
| 29203 | Columbia, SC | 15% | 52% |
| 29209 | Columbia, SC | 14% | 53% |
| 29204 | Columbia, SC | 10% | 75% |
| 29210 | Columbia, SC | 8% | 27% |
| 29207 | Columbia, SC | 5% | 100% |
| 29206 | Columbia, SC | 4% | 30% |
| 29212 | Columbia, SC | 3% | 15% |
| 29045 | Elgin, SC | 3% | 14% |
| 29208 | Columbia, SC | 2% | 100% |
| 29223 | Columbia, SC | 2% | 4% |
| 29229 | Columbia, SC | 1% | 4% |
A few homes fall in 29063, 29225, 29061. 29202, 29211, 29214, 29215, 29216, 29217, 29218, 29219, 29220, 29221, 29222, 29224, 29226, 29227, 29228, 29230, 29240, 29250, 29260, 29290, 29292 are P.O. box or single-organization ZIPs with no homes.
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
Train: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Columbia
Who supplies Columbia’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The Columbia City of (Sc4010001) water system (EPA ID SC4010001). It reported 1 health-based violation to EPA in the five years to October 2026: chlorite. 86% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 5.0 ppb (Jan 2021–Dec 2023), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Columbia?
Dominion Energy South Carolina (Dominion Energy South Carolina, Inc), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 16.4¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Columbia?
Spectrum, AT&T, lumos, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Columbia?
29205 (16%), 29201 (16%), 29203 (15%), 29209 (14%), 29204 (10%), 29210 (8%), 29207 (5%), 29206 (4%), 29212 (3%), 29045 (3%), 29208 (2%), 29223 (2%), 29229 (1%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Columbia in?
Richland School District 2. Parts of the city are in Richland School District 1 and Lexington School District 5.
How do I register to vote in Columbia?
In South Carolina you can register online until 30 days before Election Day, in person until 30 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Richland Board of Voter Registration. Check your registration at vrems.scvotes.sc.gov.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: Columbia’s own website (publicworks.columbiasc.gov, cityclerk.columbiasc.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.