Overall cost of living
BEA Regional Price Parity, U.S. = 100 · Metro · 2024 (final metro release)
Denver: #9 of 13 · lower is betterDenver costs less to live in than Boston, Seattle, San Diego and SF Bay Area. Rents have stopped climbing, and the property tax bill is among the lowest anywhere. Overall prices run 105.8 on a scale where the U.S. average is 100.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis prices the same basket of goods, services and housing in every metro. Denver comes in at 105.8, below Boston, Seattle, San Diego and SF Bay Area.
Yes, a little. A wave of new apartments opened in Denver over the last few years, and the typical asking rent has been flat to falling since. It's now about $1,900 a month, close to the national typical rent of $1,932.
Colorado taxes all income at a flat 4.4%. The property tax rate in Denver County, 0.47%, is 2nd lowest of 13. One cost to plan for is home insurance, because of hail.
Front Range storms bring hail, and insurers price it in. Colorado's average homeowners premium is $4,310 a year, the highest of any state here, and it rose 18.3% in 2025. The flip side: Denver's overall natural-disaster risk is the second-lowest of the 13 metros, with no hurricanes and moderate earthquake risk.
Every metro here has a standout stat. Denver's advantage is that it rarely trails: it finishes in the top nine of 13 on 38 of 42 measures (90%), more than any other metro, and near the bottom on just 4.
This page is one stat in that record. The full scorecard has all 42.
Share of all 42 scored measures in each band, among the 13 metros. The number is the top-nine share. See every metro →