AreaProfile

Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO

Metro Area Profile

3,002,721 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO metropolitan area.

63
Area Score
Bottom 39% of 99 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity51st of 99 published metros57
GrowthTop 47% of 99 published metros52
Housing affordability78th of 99 published metros66
Climate76th of 99 published metros62
Physical resilience66th of 99 published metros48
AccessTop 1% of 99 published metros100
Economic stabilityTop 4% of 99 published metros97
The quick read

A major airport is 10 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

Its Area Score of 63 places Denver-Aurora-Centennial in the top 61% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
3,002,721
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$105,762
Top 2% nationally
Density
360/sq mi
8344.7 sq mi of land
Median age
37.3
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO
Nearest major airport
APA
10 mi · Centennial
Median home value
$603,800
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.9% is lower than 69% of the 99 measured US metros.

Employment fell 2.9% over the past year, to 1,668,733 employed residents.

49% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 97% of measured US metros.

Household income is higher than at least 98% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$739$105,762Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$401$57,998Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate8.4%Bottom 5%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute29.0 minTop 11%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher49.4%Top 3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment1,668,733Top 16%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-2.5%Bottom 8%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-2.9%Bottom 4%June 2026
Labor force1,736,422Top 16%June 2026
Labor force participation71.8%Top 1%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$81,690Top 6%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$62,320Top 5%2025 OEWS
Metro employment1,609,350Top 16%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-0.1%Bottom 43%June 2026
Unemployment rate3.9%Bottom 31%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/066.22.6
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.9% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers42,810$37,070
Retail Salespersons40,340$38,470
Stockers and Order Fillers32,610$44,480
Registered Nurses30,380$101,130
Business Operations Specialists, All Other28,670$94,990
Software Developers27,010$137,610

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,874 takes 21% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 5.7 times median household income here, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
21.3%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.7×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,874
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$603,800
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income5.71Top 8%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate64.1%Bottom 20%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±5731,290,063Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$9$1,874Top 2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$2,575$603,800Top 3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income21.3%Top 18%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate5.3%Bottom 4%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
52/ 100
Top 47% of 99 published city profiles
Permitting is broadly steady, measured from 2024 to 2025.

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 3% since 2020, reaching 3,052,498 in 2024.

At 5.6 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
17K
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
5.6
Top 34% nationally
Year over year
+6%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
54.8%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
202020212022202320243052k2970k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 87°F and January a low of 19°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 15.0 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station DENVER CENTENNIAL AP, 9.8 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND2.3"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation15.0"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low19°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high87°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing42°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

48 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are hail, tornado and wildfire.

HailHigh
TornadoElevated
WildfireModerate

Low or minimal exposure: lightning, winter weather, strong wind, inland flooding, cold wave, earthquake, volcanic activity, landslide, heat wave, ice storm, drought, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

9 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 10 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
CentennialAPA10 mi10,001 ft
Colorado Air and Space PortCFO31 mi8,002 ft
Denver IntlDEN32 mi16,000 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.

Customize your score

What matters to you?

Choose what you weight most heavily. Nothing is saved to an account — your preferences stay in this browser, and the Area Score never changes.

Area Score
63
Your Score

Select one or more priorities to see how this location scores against them.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 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 browse every source.