Cañon City, Colorado
Area Profile
17,122 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Cañon City, in Fremont County.
How this area ranks
Data updated · 13 sourcesEmployment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 5.3% and the Opportunity signal places Cañon City in the bottom 8%. The unemployment rate is published for Fremont County, CO, which contains Cañon City, rather than for Cañon City alone.
In the public schools here, 25% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 15.6 students for every teacher.
Residential permitting has slowed: 15 units authorized over the past twelve months, 35% below the prior year.
These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.
At a glance
Jobs & opportunity
Unemployment across Fremont County, CO, which contains Cañon City, is 5.3% — higher than in all but 17% of the 4,226 measured US cities.
Employment across Fremont County, CO, which contains Cañon City, fell 2.5% over the past year, to 14,536 employed residents.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income of new arrivalsFremont County, CO’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $62,491 | 32nd percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Income of those who leftFremont County, CO’s figurefiling years 2022–2023 | $52,681 | 11th percentileof 4,101 | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Median household income ±$9,6152024 ACS 5-Year | $64,787 | Bottom 47%of 29,223 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Per capita income ±$2,4642024 ACS 5-Year | $33,142 | Bottom 48%of 31,420 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Poverty rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 13.0% | Bottom 42%of 31,773 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Average commute ±2.3 min2024 ACS 5-Year | 20.1 min | Top 18%of 31,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Bachelor's degree or higher ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 27.2% | Top 35%of 31,919 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Drove alone to work ±6%2024 ACS 5-Year | 74.4% | 41st percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| EmploymentFremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | 14,536 | Bottom 12%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (3 years)Fremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | −1.5% | Bottom 31%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Employment change (year over year)Fremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | −2.5% | Bottom 13%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor forceFremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | 15,352 | 13th percentileof 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Labor force participation ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 67.9% | Bottom 23%of 31,513 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Public transit to work ±0.1%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.0% | 73rd percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Unemployment change (year over year)Fremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | 0.0% | Bottom 45%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Unemployment rateFremont County, CO’s figureJuly 2026 | 5.3% | Bottom 17%of 4,226 | July 2026 |
| Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 10.5% | 63rd percentileof 31,433 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
Median household income, successive ACS releases
The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Fremont County, CO, which contains this city.
25% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 42% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.
There are 15.6 students for every full-time teacher across 8 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.
| School | District | Students | Per teacher | Math | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canon City High School | Fremont Re-1 | 936 | 19.9 | 21% | 46% |
| Harrison School | Fremont Re-1 | 472 | 12.8 | 22% | 37% |
| Canon City Middle School | Fremont Re-1 | 382 | 17.4 | 20% | 42% |
| Washington Elementary School | Fremont Re-1 | 319 | 13.9 | 17% | 32% |
| Canon Exploratory School | Fremont Re-1 | 316 | 15.8 | 42% | 47% |
| McKinley Elementary School | Fremont Re-1 | 262 | 12.5 | 17% | 32% |
| Lincoln School of Science and Technology | Fremont Re-1 | 254 | 12.1 | 37% | 42% |
| Mount View Core Knowledge Charter School · charter | Fremont Re-1 | 250 | 19.2 | 32% | 57% |
55.9% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.
Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Colorado’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.
Housing & affordability
How it’s calculated — housing affordability →The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Colorado is up 46% over five years, and up 2.8% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.
Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,187 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.38% of the median home value.
HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,244, some 25% above the $997 tenants already here pay.
At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,244 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $49,800 a year, about 77% of the median household income here of $64,787.
The typical renter household here spends 25% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $997 a month.
A median home at $316,100 costs 4.4 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $71,616, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.
The figures above are measured against Cañon City’s median household income of $64,787, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Colorado’s figure2026 Q2 | +2.8% | 45th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Colorado’s figure2026 Q2 | +46.4% | 68th percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Colorado’s figure2026 Q2 | +114.4% | 81st percentileof 4,154 | 2026 Q2 |
| Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year | 4.4 | Bottom 13%of 26,815 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 69.7% | 37th percentileof 31,717 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Housing units ±3372024 ACS 5-Year | 7,850 | 92nd percentileof 32,177 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Market rent, one bedroomFY2026 | $948 | Top 18%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, three bedroomFY2026 | $1,593 | Top 22%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Market rent, two bedroomFY2026 | $1,244 | Top 24%of 4,072 | FY2026 |
| Median gross rent ±$922024 ACS 5-Year | $997 | Bottom 47%of 23,120 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median home value ±$17,6932024 ACS 5-Year | $316,100 | 74th percentileof 29,111 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Median property taxes ±$832024 ACS 5-Year | $1,187 | 30th percentileof 26,440 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Owner household income ±$4,6902024 ACS 5-Year | $71,616 | Bottom 40%of 27,548 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Property tax rate ±0.03%2024 ACS 5-Year | 0.38% | 4th percentileof 20,543 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Rent as a share of income ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 25.3% | Top 34%of 22,950 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Seasonal and second homes ±1852024 ACS 5-Year | 240 | 95th percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year | 3.1% | 75th percentileof 31,895 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year | 4.3% | 34th percentileof 31,769 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Vacant housing units ±2312024 ACS 5-Year | 576 | 91st percentileof 32,330 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.
Growth & development
How it’s calculated — growth →Development Momentum
An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.
Population has grown 1% since 2020, reaching 17,193 in 2024.
Permitting has turned downward after moving the other way the year before: 21 units authorized in 2025, 16% below the prior year.
New construction is predominantly single-family: of 15 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.
Federal tax returns show Fremont County, which contains Cañon City, gained about 0.7% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $62,491, above the $52,681 of households that moved out.
At 0.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.
Population, annual estimates
People moving in and out
Where newcomers came from
- El Paso County, CO 420 people · 17% of arrivals
- Pueblo County, CO 221 people · 9.2% of arrivals
- Jefferson County, CO 91 people · 3.8% of arrivals
- Arapahoe County, CO 77 people · 3.2% of arrivals
- Chaffee County, CO 76 people · 3.2% of arrivals
Where people who left went
- El Paso County, CO 311 people · 14% of departures
- Pueblo County, CO 244 people · 11% of departures
- Custer County, CO 45 people · 2.1% of departures
- Chaffee County, CO 44 people · 2.0% of departures
- Denver County, CO 41 people · 1.9% of departures
Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Fremont County, CO. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.
Housing units permitted per year
Weather & climate
5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 89°F and January a low of 18°F.
Normal annual precipitation is 13.7 inches, including 38.3 inches of snow.
Air quality measures a median index of 13, in the Good band, and no day in the year passed 100.
Precipitation
| Metric | Value | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| 90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year | 29 | 2024 calendar year |
| Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals | 13.7" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals | 38.3" | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average January low1991-2020 Normals | 18°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Average July high1991-2020 Normals | 89°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals | 5 | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year | 0 | 2024 calendar year |
| Median air quality index2024 calendar year | 13 | 2024 calendar year |
| Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals | 40°F | 1991-2020 Normals |
Air quality
Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.
Physical risk
The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and lightning, with inland flooding alone responsible for 72% of it. Lightning is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.
Low or minimal exposure: lightning, landslide, winter weather, volcanic activity, earthquake, drought, heat wave, tornado, strong wind, ice storm, cold wave, tsunami, hurricane, coastal flooding.
Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.
These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.
Fremont County has a modeled homicide rate of about 6.9 per 100,000 residents a year, because the CDC suppresses counts this small, higher than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.
Firearm deaths of all intents run at 29.8 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.
Drug overdose deaths run at 25.8 per 100,000 residents in Fremont County.
Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.
Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Cañon City (Fremont County) rather than Cañon City itself. They are shown and not scored. How to read death rates.
What this profile does not cover
Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.
- Reported crime
- Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. Either no municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — or its department did not report every month of the year. Either way there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
- Cost of living
- Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
- Taxes
- Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
- Anything about a specific address
- Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.
Access
7 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest City of Colorado Springs Muni at 38 miles.
| Metric | Value | Compared nationally | Source period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadband access ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year | 86.1% | Bottom 35%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Distance to major airportNASR current cycle | 38 mi | Bottom 21%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle | 7 | Top 13%of 4,226 | NASR current cycle |
| No internet access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year | 11.9% | Bottom 30%of 31,588 | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Airport | Code | Distance | Longest runway |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Colorado Springs Muni | COS | 38 mi | 13,500 ft |
| Pueblo Meml | PUB | 41 mi | 10,498 ft |
| Central Colorado Rgnl | AEJ | 55 mi | 8,303 ft |
Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.
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Similar places
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Data & methodology
| Used for | Source | Source period |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Federal Aviation Administration Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service | NASR current cycle |
| Physical risk | Federal Emergency Management Agency National Risk Index | National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0) |
| Demographics, Income | Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county) | filing years 2022–2023 |
| Climate | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly) | 1991-2020 Normals |
| Jobs | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics | July 2026 |
| Development | U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey | 12 months ending July 2026 |
| Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, Jobs | U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File) | 2024 ACS 5-Year |
| Demographics | U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program | July 1, 2024 estimate |
| Safety | U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics Provisional county-level mortality by intent | March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026 |
| Schools | U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments | 2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year |
| Housing | U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research Fair Market Rents | FY2026 |
| Climate | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System Daily Air Quality Index by county | 2024 calendar year |
| Housing | U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) | 2026 Q2 |
| Current conditions | NOAA National Weather Service National Weather Service current conditions | Live observation, read when the page opens |
Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.
ZIP codes in Cañon City
1 ZIP areaEvery ZIP area in Cañon City with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Cañon City closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.
| ZIP | Population | Median household income | Median home value | Area Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81212 | 32,292 | $64,235 | $329,000 | — |