Yes.
The minimum income that Colorado residents need to afford basic necessities is among the highest in the nation.
Colorado’s living hourly wage was $26 an hour for a single person with no kids in early 2026, and $65.47 for a single person with two kids, the MIT Living Wage Calculator shows. Those figures rank 10th and 8th in the country, respectively. The state minimum wage is $15.16.
Minimum living wages are calculated based on the cost of essentials including housing, medical care, childcare and food.
The median rent in the U.S. was $1,487 per month in 2024, the most recent year for which U.S. census data was available. Colorado’s median rent at that time was $1,491 excluding Denver, where the median rent was $1,750.
Hawaii and Massachusetts were the states with the highest minimum living wage. Arkansas and West Virginia had the lowest.
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Sources
- Denver Metro Apartment Vacancy and Rent 4th Quarter 2025 Report Metro Denver Apartment Association
- Colorado Housing and Finance Authority Colorado Statewide Apartment Survey
- U.S. Census Bureau 2024 American Community Survey
- MIT Living Wage Calculator Living Wage Calculation for Colorado