2025 Compare Cities Education:
Columbia, SC vs Riverside, CA

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Highlights
- Riverside spends 10.8% less per student than Columbia.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 52.1% higher in Riverside than in Columbia. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Riverside had 8.8% fewer residents who had graduated High School compared to Columbia
 Columbia, SCRiverside, CAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$15,296$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$14,952  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,941$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio15.36  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock249534573
 Students per Counselor336  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock9.5%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.7.3%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock82.5%88.9%
 Some College Educ.18.8%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock8.1%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.44.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock6.6%9.3%
 Professional Degree4.5%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.6%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 Riverside    42 Reviews

I've lived in Riverside for 54 years. It changed a LOT when people from LA started moving here in droves. Still, I have never been robbed or assaulted but I am  More

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I'm from Orange County (OC). I have had nothing but trouble since moving to Riverside. 1. The dogs are aggressive guard dogs. If you want to walk or bike you  More

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Over 7 years ago

Whew where to begin with dear old riverside. I enjoyed growing up here until my high school years (back in 2011). In 7 short years the downward deterioration of the  More

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