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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
No second income to fall back on. Our model scored 11 cities in Colorado on solo-living metrics. Pueblo leads at index 94 with rent of $1,316/mo.
No second income to fall back on. Our model scored 11 cities in Colorado on solo-living metrics. Pueblo leads at index 94 with rent of $1,316/mo.
In plain English: What does daily life actually cost in Pueblo? Start with the 29% rent-to-income ratio — tight but manageable for most households. That's a reasonable number. On the category level, Housing (index 85) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 97) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $55,305 and homes at $283,780 round out a profile that ranks #1 for clear reasons.
Digging deeper, Colorado — outdoor lifestyle with a rising price tag. The 11 cities we track here average a cost index of 111 — for better or worse — and median income of $90,112. It lands right near the national baseline, which makes the differences between individual cities all the more important. The typical rent runs $1,765/month, which is $130 less than the national median. Surprising? Maybe. But the data's clear.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. The difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers.
#1 Ranked: Pueblo — cost index 94, rent $1,316/mo, income $55,305
Singles scoring: rent $1,316/mo (solo housing), cost index 94, population 111,077 — livability on one income
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pueblo | 94 | $1,316 | Details |
| 2 | Denver | 113 | $1,818 | Details |
| 3 | Colorado Springs | 107 | $1,667 | Details |
| 4 | Aurora | 108 | $1,689 | Details |
| 5 | Fort Collins | 117 | $1,970 | Details |
| 6 | Lakewood | 114 | $1,733 | Details |
| 7 | Thornton | 113 | $1,888 | Details |
| 8 | Arvada | 121 | $2,053 | Details |
| 9 | Westminster | 112 | $1,788 | Details |
| 10 | Greeley | 102 | $1,442 | Details |
| 11 | Centennial | 122 | $2,056 | Details |
111,077 residents · Colorado
Here's Pueblo by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 94. Rent: $1,316/month — for better or worse — . Income: $55,305/year. Home price: $283,780. Population: 111,077. The strongest category is Housing at 85; the most expensive is Healthcare at 97. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $6,948 per year vs. the national median. For freelancers and gig workers with variable income, this cushion is everything (that's pre-tax, of course).
716,577 residents · Colorado
The #2 spot goes to Denver, and the breakdown explains why. And for the typical household, renters here pay $1,818/month — saving renters $924 per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Utilities is the standout at index 104, keeping costs manageable. The weak spot? Housing at 133. At a 24% rent-to-income ratio, there's genuine breathing room in the average household budget (not adjusted for inflation, but still telling).
488,664 residents · Colorado
A closer look at Colorado Springs: the cost index of 107 — which, honestly, is lower than you'd expect here — breaks down to a Utilities index of 98 (strongest category) and a Housing index of 118 (weakest). Median rent is $1,667/month — 12% below the national median — while household income sits at $83,198, meaning locals spend about 24% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
395,052 residents · Colorado
What does daily life actually cost in Aurora? Start with the 24% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Utilities (index 99) is where the real savings show up, while Housing (index 120) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $84,320 and homes at $458,953 round out a profile that ranks #4 for clear reasons.
170,376 residents · Colorado
Here's Fort Collins by the numbers — and there's a lot to like. And for many people, cost index: 117. Nothing too surprising there. Rent: $1,970/month. Income: $83,598/year. Home price: $556,327. Population: 170,376. The strongest category is Utilities at 108; the most expensive is Housing at 142. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are costing renters $900 more per year vs. the national median. Not many cities can claim this (and that gap widens if you factor in state taxes).
Pueblo ranks #1 in Colorado for this analysis with a cost index of 94 and median income of $55,305.
Pueblo scores highest for singles due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,316/mo, and competitive median income of $55,305.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
Pueblo (ranked #1) has a cost index of 94 and rent of $1,316/mo, while Centennial (ranked #11) has a cost index of 122 and rent of $2,056/mo — a 28-point difference in cost of living.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Pueblo is $1,316/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $579 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Pueblo is $283,780, which is 5.1× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
Colorado has a 4.4% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 7.81%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.49%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.