2025 Compare Cities Education:
Columbia, SC vs Laurel, MD

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Highlights
- Laurel spends 2.6% more per student than Columbia.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 9.6% lower in Laurel than in Columbia. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Laurel had 1.8% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to Columbia
 Columbia, SCLaurel, MDUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$17,603$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$14,952  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$9,718$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.36  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock11554573
 Students per Counselor336  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock5.0%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.7.3%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock88.9%88.9%
 Some College Educ.18.8%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock7.3%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.44.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock15.5%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.5%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock3.2%1.5%
Reviews for Columbia    50 Reviews

Over 2 years ago

I love living in Columbia! I recently graduated from USC and plan to stay. I read the reviews posted here and it shows that like many cities, your experience will depend  More

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Loved living in Columbia, SC prior to my job transfer. It's the perfect size - plenty to do, but still a laid back place. People are extremely friendly, there are  More

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Columbia is such a unique and underrated place. It has a lot of character and history, and good nature trails. Everything feels accessible (by car) and you can get from  More

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Reviews for Laurel    8 Reviews

Nice place 1200 a month 1 bedroom apartment but everything is a 10 min drive some old history good schools people get along  More

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Over 15 years ago

Laurel as a whole is not a bad place to live. Housing is considerably cheaper than in many parts of the DC/Baltimore area. There are some nice shops and restaurants  More

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Over 15 years ago

Laurel as a whole is not a bad place to live. Housing is considerably cheaper than in many parts of the DC/Baltimore area. There are some nice shops and restaurants  More

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