Denver, CO vs Boulder, CO
Moving from Denver to Boulder? Here's what changes — from your equivalent salary to housing ($573,221 → $727,954 median home) and taxes.
Denver vs Boulder at a glance
Bars scaled to the range across all 200 metros; labels show actual values.
To keep the same standard of living as $100,000 in Denver, CO, you'd need about $95,127 in Boulder, CO (−$4,873).
Livability — Denver, CO: 52 · Boulder, CO: 54 (0–100).
What your home budget buys
A $500,000 home budget gets you about 1,657 sqft in Denver vs 1,305 sqft in Boulder ($302 vs $383 per sqft).
Annual cost breakdown (at $100,000)
| Category | Denver, CO | Boulder, CO | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | $22,920 | $27,084 | +$4,164 |
| Groceries | $5,079 | $4,814 | −$265 |
| Transportation | $4,050 | $4,050 | +$0 |
| Utilities | $1,788 | $1,788 | +$0 |
| Insurance | $2,800 | $2,800 | +$0 |
| Taxes | $9,828 | $10,679 | +$851 |
| Total | $46,464 | $51,214 | +$4,750 |
Side by side
| Metric | Denver, CO | Boulder, CO |
|---|---|---|
| Cost-of-living index | 105.8 | 100.6 |
| Unemployment rate | 4.26% | 4.41% |
| Population growth (5-yr) | 5.7% | 3.8% |
| Air quality (median AQI) | 42 | 42 |
| Big Mac price (est.) | $6.02 | $5.72 |
| Median home price | $573,221 | $727,954 |
| Home price ÷ income | 5.9× | 7.3× |
| 1-yr home appreciation | -2.9% | -2.6% |
| Price per square foot | $302 | $383 |
| Median rent | $1,910 | $2,257 |
| Total tax burden (% income) | 9.7% | 9.7% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.77% | 7.77% |
| Capital gains tax | 4.40% | 4.40% |
| Property tax rate | 0.52% | 0.53% |
| Healthcare (annual) | $6,800 | $6,800 |
| Childcare (annual, infant) | $16,000 | $16,000 |
| Vehicle property tax | 1.79% | 1.79% |
| Avg commute (min) | 28 | 23 |
| Home insurance / yr | $2,800 | $2,800 |
| Auto insurance / yr | $2,000 | $2,000 |
| Flood insurance / yr | $550 | $550 |
| Earthquake insurance / yr | $100 | $100 |
| Electricity ¢/kWh | 16.5 | 16.5 |
| Gas $/gal | 3.30 | 3.30 |
| Natural gas / mo | $65 | $65 |
| Water & sewer / mo | $120 | $120 |
| Home internet / mo | $87 | $87 |
| Violent crime /100k | 490 | 490 |
| Avg summer high °F | 88 | 88 |
| Avg winter low °F | 18 | 18 |
| Annual precipitation (in) | 15.4 | 15.4 |
| Annual snowfall (in) | 49.0 | 49.0 |
| Sunshine (% possible) | 69% | 69% |
| Permit difficulty (1–5) | 3 | 3 |