Durango, CO

Micro Area Profile

56,331 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Durango, CO micropolitan area.

53out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 33% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
OpportunityTop 21% of 835 metro and micro areas measured66
SchoolsTop 27% of 695 metro and micro areas measured68
Growth482nd of 834 metro and micro areas measured45
Housing affordability805th of 835 metro and micro areas measured42
Climate795th of 835 metro and micro areas measured52
Physical resilience758th of 835 metro and micro areas measured20
AccessTop 8% of 835 metro and micro areas measured98
Economic stabilityTop 26% of 835 metro and micro areas measured72
The quick read

Durango ranks in the top 21% of metro and micro areas measured for employment opportunity, with unemployment at 3.6% and median household income of $86,056.

In the public schools here, 32% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 12.6 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 226 units authorized over the past twelve months, 44% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

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

Population
56,331
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$86,056
Top 11% nationally
Density
33/sq mi
1,689.7 sq mi of land
Median age
43.2
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Colorado
Nearest major airport
DRO
11 mi · Durango-La Plata County
Median home value
$591,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 3.6%, lower than in 73% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment fell 1.2% over the past year, to 27,713 employed residents.

49% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 97% of measured US metro and micro areas.

Median household income of $86,056 is higher than in 89% of measured US metro and micro areas.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$3,0292024 ACS 5-Year$86,056Top 11%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,9842024 ACS 5-Year$49,353Top 7%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year10.9%Top 31%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year22.0 minTop 28%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year49.3%Top 3%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year66.1%6th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202627,713Bottom 39%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026−1.9%Bottom 29%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−1.2%Bottom 38%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202628,74538th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year81.2%Top 20%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.2%2024 ACS 5-Year0.2%31st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.1%Bottom 30%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20263.6%Top 27%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year18.1%95th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/075.62.7
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 3.6% in July 2026. It has been rising for the last 3 months, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

32% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 53% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.6 students for every full-time teacher across 22 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
22
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.6
across all schools here
Math proficiency
31.6%
Top 43% in Colorado
Reading proficiency
52.7%
Top 29% in Colorado
The 12 largest of 22 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Durango High SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R1,35216.342%72%
Escalante Middle SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R46113.228%45%
Park Elementary SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R45212.941%50%
Bayfield High SchoolBayfield School District No. 10Jt-R40412.245%65%
Riverview Elementary SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R37412.135%52%
Needham Elementary SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R36711.827%42%
Miller Middle SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R36012.033%52%
Mountain Middle School · charterState Charter School Institute30218.946%73%
Florida Mesa Elementary SchoolDurango School District No. 9-R29310.527%42%
Bayfield Middle SchoolBayfield School District No. 10Jt-R28312.921%51%
Ignacio Elementary SchoolIgnacio School District No. 11Jt27911.68%22%
Bayfield Intermediate SchoolBayfield School District No. 10Jt-R27411.919%28%

38.8% 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.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,552 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.26% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,589, close to the $1,504 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,589 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $63,600 a year, about 74% of the median household income here of $86,056.

The typical renter household here spends 32% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,504 a month.

A median home at $591,500 costs 5.9 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $99,614, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
31.5%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.9×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,589
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,504
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$591,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Durango’s median household income of $86,056, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year5.9Bottom 3%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year70.9%57th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±472024 ACS 5-Year28,99042nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,211Bottom 19%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,942Bottom 19%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,589Bottom 15%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$912024 ACS 5-Year$1,504Bottom 9%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$21,3962024 ACS 5-Year$591,50096th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$722024 ACS 5-Year$1,55236th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$4,9112024 ACS 5-Year$99,614Top 15%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.02%2024 ACS 5-Year0.26%1st percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year31.5%Bottom 19%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±3872024 ACS 5-Year2,71872nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year9.4%85th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year6.5%35th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±5032024 ACS 5-Year4,61249th percentileof 9352024 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.

Development Momentum

45/ 100
Ranks 482 of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running 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 2% since 2020, reaching 56,823 in 2024.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 226 units permitted over the past twelve months, only 2% are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 4.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
226
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
4.0
Top 32% nationally
Year over year
−44%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
2.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202457k56k
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. It has been rising, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

Weather & climate

4 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 10°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 13.5 inches.

0°20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station DURANGO LA PLATA CO AP, 10.9 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND2.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals13.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals10°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals87°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals41991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals46°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

20 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and avalanche, with inland flooding alone responsible for 62% of it.

WildfireHigh
AvalancheElevated
Inland floodingElevated
EarthquakeModerate

Low or minimal exposure: landslide, lightning, winter weather, drought, ice storm, tornado, strong wind, heat wave, hail, cold wave, tsunami, volcanic activity, coastal flooding, hurricane.

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.

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. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. 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.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
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

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Durango-La Plata County at 11 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year90.0%Top 34%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle11 miTop 13%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle4Top 43%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year6.6%Top 28%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Durango-La Plata CountyDRO11 mi9,201 ft
Stevens FldPSO43 mi8,100 ft
Montrose RgnlMTJ85 mi10,000 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.

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Area Score
53
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
Current conditionsNOAA 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.

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