Cost Of Living in Aspen, CO

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F

50%

Overall NAT. AVG.

1%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

164%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Aspen	Colorado	National
Cost of living	150	111	100
Goods & Services	99	104	100
Groceries	104	101	100
Health care	109	100	100
Housing	264	134	100
Transportation	109	105	100
Utilities	90	91	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Aspen is 35% higher than the Colorado average
The cost of living in Aspen is 50% higher than the national average
Aspen housing is 164% higher than the national average
Colorado general sales tax is 43% lower than the national average
Colorado state income tax is 69% higher than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$92,426	$7,702	$2,156	$2,773
Renters	$66,027	$5,502	$1,541	$1,981

A good indicator of the general affordability of housing in Aspen, CO, is the percentage of monthly income that should be spent on housing expenses, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Generally speaking, no more than 28 percent of your total gross income should be spent on your housing expenses and not more than 36 percent of your gross income on total expenses, including debts. In Aspen, the median monthly income is $92,426 for those who own their own homes. Under the standard rule, that income level would allow for $2,156 to be budgeted for housing expenses each month, at the most. Renters, on the other hand, earn about $66,027, per the median income in the area. That would allow for renters to spend up to $1,541 on monthly rental expenses.

Colorado Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Colorado	2.9%	10%

Colorado Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Colorado	4.4%	4.4%

Goods & Services

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$27.07	$24.26	11.6%
Beauty Salon	$38.50	$45.56	15.5%
Toothpaste	$3.65	$3.70	1.5%
Shampoo	$1.11	$1.28	13.1%
Movie	$10.84	$12.13	10.6%
Bowling	$13.55	$18.00	24.7%

Groceries

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.27	$5.84	9.7%
Fried Chicken	$1.39	$1.57	11.9%
Milk	$4.60	$4.67	1.5%
Potatoes	$4.16	$4.93	15.8%
Pizza	$12.49	$12.09	3.3%
Beer	$10.74	$10.41	3.2%

Health Care

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$108.15	$125.68	13.9%
Doctor	$121.76	$135.78	10.3%
Dentist	$124.32	$113.29	9.7%
Ibuprofen	$10.46	$10.65	1.8%
Lipitor	$505.02	$468.60	7.8%

Housing

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$558,000.00	$184,700.00	202.1%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$2,179.59	$2,346.69	7.1%
Apartment Rent	$1,671.00	$949.00	76.1%

Transportation

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.55	$3.46	2.6%
Tire Balancing	$56.90	$59.92	5.0%

Utilities

Item	Aspen	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$173.81	$193.99	10.4%
Phone	$193.95	$192.25	0.9%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Norrie, CO	0	100	0.1%
Woody Creek, CO	212	93	7.4%
El Jebel, CO	4,349	155	54.7%
Snowmass Village, CO	2,786	156	55.9%
Basalt, CO	3,941	177	76.9%
Aspen, CO	7,721	150	49.7%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Leola, PA	7,720	109	9.3%
Waite Park, MN	7,719	99	0.6%
Wellington, KS	7,716	85	15.0%
Union, SC	7,716	83	16.7%
Fort Scott, KS	7,715	77	22.6%
Aspen, CO	7,721	150	49.7%