Boulder vs Fort Collins
The short version
- Fort Collins is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 4% lower than in the Boulder area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $577,900 in Fort Collins and $1,039,500 in Boulder.
- Boulder gets far more snow: 93 inches a year vs 51.
- Fort Collins is growing faster: +1% since 2020 vs -2.6%.
Side by side
| Boulder, CO | Fort Collins, CO | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 105,689 | 171,500 |
| Growth since 2020 | -2.6% | +1% |
| People per square mile | 3,932 | 2,996 |
| Median age | 28.8 | 30.9 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 77% | 61% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $87,493 | $85,070 |
| Median home value | $1,039,500 | $577,900 |
| Home value to income | 11.9× | 6.8× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $2,018 | $1,690 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 105.2 | 101.1 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 157.0 | 120.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $78,900 | $75,800 |
| Homeowners | 47% | 52% |
| Top state income tax | 4.4% | 4.4% |
| Combined sales tax | 7.89% | 7.89% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 18.1 | 19.5 |
| Work from home | 34% | 22% |
| Take public transit | 5% | 1% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6% | 5.4% |
| Poverty rate | 21.5% | 15.8% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 47° / 22° | 45° / 18° |
| July high / low | 88° / 57° | 87° / 59° |
| Precipitation per year | 21 in | 16 in |
| Snowfall per year | 93 in | 51 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 33 | 29 |
| Nights below freezing | 138 | 150 |
| Comfortable months | 4 | 4 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively Moderate | Relatively Moderate |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 90.7 | 90.1 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 58% | 51% |
| Home prices, past year | -2.3% | +0.2% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +22.5% | +29.3% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Boulder: May to June and August to September. Fort Collins: May to June and August to September.
Full monthly tables: Boulder weather by month and Fort Collins weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $78,900 in Boulder and $75,800 in Fort Collins. Moving from Boulder to Fort Collins, you would need about $72,100 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Boulder and Fort Collins
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Boulder and Fort Collins.
Which would you pick?
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