Columbus vs Austin: where does a firefighter save more?
Best for saving: Columbus โ about $1,449/mo after taxes and living costs.
Columbus US โ
Best for saving | Austin US | |
|---|---|---|
| Median salary | $61,780 | $58,830 |
| Take-home / mo | $4,029 | $4,029 |
| Income tax | ~22% | ~18% |
| Living costs / mo | $2,580 | $2,910 |
| Savings / mo | $1,449 | $1,119 |
| Savings rate | 36% | 28% |
| Verdict | Excellent | Comfortable |
Single professional, after-tax. "Savings" = take-home โ a baseline cost of living. A planning estimate, not financial advice.
How we calculated this
โข Salary: BLS/OECD median for a firefighter, adjusted per city.
โข Tax: each country's single-filer effective rate (e.g. US ~22%, US ~18%).
โข Living costs: a single professional's baseline monthly budget per city.
Estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026.