| | Cranston, RI | Columbia, MD | United States |
| Population | 82,654 | 105,086 | 329,725,481 |
| Female Population | 49.7% | 51.9% | 50.5% |
| Male Population | 50.3% | 48.1% | 49.5% |
| Median Age | 40 | 38.9 | 38.4 |
| space3 | | | |
| Population - 2010 | 80,797 | 98,379 | 309,327,143 |
| Population - 2000 | 79,269 | 88,254 | 285,036,114 |
| Population - 1990 | 76,060 | 75,883 | 251,960,433 |
| Pop. 2000 to Now | 2.4% | 23.2% | 15.6% |
| Pop. 1990 to Now | 6.7% | 43.3% | 30.8% |
| space4 | | | |
| Population Density | 2,917.2 | 3,290.5 | 93.4 |
| Land Area | 28.3 | 31.9 | 3,531,905.4 |
| Water Area | 1.7 | 0.3 | 264,836.8 |
| space | | | |
| Est. Total Population By Age | | | |
| | Cranston, RI | Columbia, MD | United States |
| Age 0 to 4 | 5.6% | 5.5% | 5.9% |
| Age 5 to 9 | 5.3% | 5.4% | 6.1% |
| Age 10 to 14 | 6.3% | 6.4% | 6.6% |
| Age 15 to 17 | 3.4% | 3.9% | 3.9% |
| Age 18 to 20 | 3.0% | 3.6% | 4.0% |
| Age 21 to 24 | 4.7% | 5.2% | 5.2% |
| Age 25 to 34 | 14.2% | 14.4% | 13.8% |
| Age 35 to 44 | 14.0% | 14.1% | 12.9% |
| Age 45 to 54 | 11.6% | 13.3% | 12.6% |
| Age 55 to 59 | 6.9% | 6.8% | 6.7% |
| Age 60 to 64 | 8.7% | 5.8% | 6.3% |
| Age 65 to 74 | 9.3% | 8.9% | 9.6% |
| Age 75 to 84 | 4.3% | 4.7% | 4.5% |
| Age 85 and over | 2.7% | 2.1% | 1.9% |
| space1 | | | |
| Race | | | |
| | Cranston, RI | Columbia, MD | United States |
| White | 67.7% | 44.8% | 59.4% |
| Black | 5.1% | 27.2% | 12.2% |
| Asian | 6.8% | 13.3% | 5.6% |
| Native American | 0.2% | 0.3% | 0.6% |
| Hawaiian, Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Other | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.4% |
| Two or More Races | 3.5% | 5.0% | 3.2% |
| Hispanic | 16.2% | 8.6% | 18.4% |
| space2 | | | |
| Marriage & Family | | | |
| | Cranston, RI | Columbia, MD | United States |
| Married Population | 47.1% | 49.7% | 49.8% |
| Currently Married | 45.6% | 48.3% | 48.0% |
| Married but Separated | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.8% |
| Single Population | 52.9% | 50.3% | 50.2% |
| Never Married | 34.8% | 34.8% | 33.8% |
| Divorced | 11.9% | 10.1% | 10.8% |
| Widowed | 6.3% | 5.4% | 5.6% |
| space5 | | | |
| Household Size | 2.48 | 2.55 | 2.60 |
| Households | 31,917 | 40,937 | 124,010,992 |
| Family Households | 19,646 | 27,463 | 80,755,759 |
| Married couple, w/children | 30.0% | 30.4% | 30.5% |
| Married couple, no children | 43.8% | 41.4% | 42.9% |
| Non Family Households | 12,271 | 13,474 | 43,255,233 |
| Single householder, w/children | 14.3% | 14.3% | 15.8% |
| Single householder, no children | 11.9% | 13.9% | 10.8% |