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Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and Colorado does this very well. Families love the Centennial State's beaches, midlands, and mountains as tourists before moving here and calling it home.
But before you decide to relocate, you have to do some research into the exact cost of living around the state -- and that's how we're going to help you.
These are the places in Colorado that cost a pretty penny -- the most expensive cities in the state.
After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Colorado for 2021.
So where is the most expensive place to live in Colorado? That would be Boulder.
the 2015-2019 American Community Survey for the 78 places in Colorado with more than 5,000 people.
Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in Colorado for 2021:
What's the most expensive place to live in Colorado? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Boulder is the most expensive place to live in Colorado.
So hopefully Craig (the cheapest place to live in Colorado) can show these guys how to live on a budget in the coming years. Read on for how these places had costs rise faster than inflation.
And if you already knew these places were expensive, check out some more reading about Colorado and the most expensive cities in the country:
The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Colorado For 2021
/10
Population: 106,392
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 10.1x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 44.7x (4th most expensive)
More on Boulder: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Boulder comes in at $69,520 and the median home value is $700,000 for 2021.
/10
Population: 5,479
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 9.6x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 50.7x (19th most expensive)
More on Vail: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Vail comes in at $80,987 and the median home value is $773,700 for 2021.
/10
Population: 7,431
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 4)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 8.1x (3rd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.2x (23rd most expensive)
More on Aspen: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Aspen comes in at $78,292 and the median home value is $636,400 for 2021.
/10
Population: 6,785
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 6.1x (15th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 46.4x (7th most expensive)
More on Carbondale: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Carbondale comes in at $81,012 and the median home value is $496,300 for 2021.
/10
Population: 5,328
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 7.3x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 47.0x (8th most expensive)
More on Edgewater: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Edgewater comes in at $56,028 and the median home value is $408,500 for 2021.
/10
Population: 20,693
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 7.2x (7th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.2x (24th most expensive)
More on Golden: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Golden comes in at $72,349 and the median home value is $522,200 for 2021.
/10
Population: 18,588
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 7.0x (9th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.5x (28th most expensive)
More on Durango: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Durango comes in at $66,160 and the median home value is $463,700 for 2021.
/10
Population: 12,928
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 7.5x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.3x (42nd most expensive)
More on Steamboat Springs: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Steamboat Springs comes in at $77,419 and the median home value is $584,200 for 2021.
/10
Population: 5,791
Rank Last Year: 30 (Up 21)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 7.0x (10th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 48.3x (10th most expensive)
More on Salida: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Salida comes in at $46,875 and the median home value is $328,200 for 2021.
/10
Population: 6,539
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 6.3x (13th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 54.5x (35th most expensive)
More on Avon: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Avon comes in at $76,303 and the median home value is $477,900 for 2021.
How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Centennial State For 2021
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:
- How much do money do I make?
- How much do I have spend to live there?
You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.
For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing it's actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.
With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2015-2019 around incomes and costs. They are:
- Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
- Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
- Median Home Price
We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).
You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Colorado to figure out which is the most expensive.
What you are left with is a "Cost of Living Index" by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.
So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 78 places in Colorado that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in Colorado according to the data is Boulder. You can download the data here.
Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Colorado For 2021
Well there you have it, the places in Colorado that have the highest cost of living, with Boulder ranking as the most expensive city in the Centennial State.
Here's a look at the most affordable cities in Colorado according to the data:
- Craig
- La Junta
- Fort Morgan
For more Colorado reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Colorado
- Cheapest Places To Live In Colorado
- Most Dangerous Cities In Colorado
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Colorado
- Safest Places In Colorado
- Worst Places To Live In Colorado
Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In Colorado
| Rank | City | ExpensiveScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boulder | 3.0 |
| 2 | Vail | 8.0 |
| 3 | Aspen | 10.33 |
| 4 | Carbondale | 11.67 |
| 5 | Edgewater | 13.0 |
| 6 | Golden | 14.33 |
| 7 | Durango | 17.67 |
| 8 | Steamboat Springs | 18.33 |
| 9 | Salida | 20.67 |
| 10 | Avon | 20.67 |
| 11 | Fort Collins | 21.67 |
| 12 | Wheat Ridge | 22.0 |
| 13 | Lakewood | 23.33 |
| 14 | Gypsum | 23.67 |
| 15 | Englewood | 24.33 |
| 16 | Denver | 24.33 |
| 17 | Glenwood Springs | 25.0 |
| 18 | Greenwood Village | 27.67 |
| 19 | Gunnison | 28.0 |
| 20 | Lafayette | 28.33 |
| 21 | Louisville | 28.67 |
| 22 | Estes Park | 29.33 |
| 23 | Glendale | 29.33 |
| 24 | Sheridan | 30.0 |
| 25 | Cherry Hills Village | 30.0 |
| 26 | Northglenn | 32.33 |
| 27 | Littleton | 32.67 |
| 28 | Lone Tree | 33.0 |
| 29 | Eagle | 33.33 |
| 30 | Longmont | 34.0 |
| 31 | Aurora | 34.33 |
| 32 | Erie | 34.67 |
| 33 | Superior | 36.0 |
| 34 | Broomfield | 36.33 |
| 35 | Westminster | 36.67 |
| 36 | Manitou Springs | 37.0 |
| 37 | Loveland | 38.0 |
| 38 | Arvada | 39.0 |
| 39 | Montrose | 39.33 |
| 40 | Berthoud | 40.67 |
| 41 | Centennial | 41.67 |
| 42 | Thornton | 41.67 |
| 43 | Alamosa | 42.33 |
| 44 | Fountain | 43.67 |
| 45 | Fruita | 45.17 |
| 46 | Evans | 45.17 |
| 47 | Grand Junction | 46.0 |
| 48 | Castle Rock | 47.0 |
| 49 | Colorado Springs | 47.0 |
| 50 | Cortez | 47.0 |
| 51 | Woodland Park | 47.17 |
| 52 | Castle Pines | 47.33 |
| 53 | Greeley | 47.33 |
| 54 | Commerce City | 47.33 |
| 55 | Lochbuie | 47.67 |
| 56 | Parker | 47.67 |
| 57 | Brighton | 48.0 |
| 58 | Delta | 49.0 |
| 59 | Windsor | 50.0 |
| 60 | Dacono | 51.33 |
| 61 | Monument | 52.67 |
| 62 | Federal Heights | 52.67 |
| 63 | Pueblo | 53.67 |
| 64 | Brush | 54.33 |
| 65 | Wellington | 55.17 |
| 66 | Trinidad | 55.33 |
| 67 | Firestone | 55.33 |
| 68 | John | 57.0 |
| 69 | Frederick | 58.67 |
| 70 | Rifle | 60.67 |
| 71 | Fort Lupton | 62.67 |
| 72 | Lamar | 64.0 |
| 73 | Milliken | 64.0 |
| 74 | Eaton | 64.0 |
| 75 | Sterling | 66.33 |
| 76 | Fort Morgan | 66.33 |
| 77 | La Junta | 67.0 |
| 78 | Craig | 71.0 |
