What is the cost of living in Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

Denver-Aurora-Centennial has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 105.8, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 146.9, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $2,089/month.

What is the median salary in Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

The median salary in Denver-Aurora-Centennial is $78,519 annually (mean: $82,464). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, Stockers and Order Fillers.

How safe is Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

The violent crime rate in the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area is 481 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 2641 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

The state of CO has 1,923 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 16.6:1. Charter schools make up 14% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

Infant center-based childcare in the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area averages $12,821 per year. Preschool averages $11,013/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Denver-Aurora-Centennial a good place to relocate?

Denver-Aurora-Centennial has a Life Score of 39.7/100 (F), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This places Denver-Aurora-Centennial in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Denver-Aurora-Centennial sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Denver-Aurora-Centennial ranks #377 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO

LiveAbility 26.4/100 places Denver-Aurora-Centennial #377 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

105.8
Cost index (US=100): $2,089
2BR rent / mo: $78,519
Median salary: 26.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Denver-Aurora-Centennial ranks #377 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (26.4/100), with its strongest marks in job market and schools.

#377
of 387 US metros · Well below median: 5,957,493
metro-area population: 481
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,923
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: air quality (3/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Denver-Aurora-Centennial ranks #377 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 105.8 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $2,089/mo, median salary $78,519; LiveAbility Score 26.4/100, strongest in job market and schools.

Signature: LiveAbility 26.4/100 places Denver-Aurora-Centennial #377 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 105.8 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $2,089/mo.

LiveAbility 26.4/100 puts Denver-Aurora-Centennial in the bottom third (#377 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area is 1,580,940.

Denver-Aurora-Centennial vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

26 Top 97% higher than 3% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Denver-Aurora-Centennial housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Denver-Aurora-Centennial MSA; housing RPP 146.9 (100 = national average); 2BR $2,089/mo.

Studio

$1,643

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,754

/month

2 Bedroom

$2,089

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,734

/month

4 Bedroom

$3,049

/month

Denver-Aurora-Centennial wages and employment

Denver-Aurora-Centennial posts 1,580,940 total employment with median salary $78,519 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$78,519

Mean Salary

$82,464

Total Employment

1,580,940

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$37,070
Retail Salespersons	$38,470
Stockers and Order Fillers	$44,480
Registered Nurses	$101,130
Business Operations Specialists, All Other	$94,990

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area from NCES.

Schools

1,923

Enrollment

871,440

Student:Teacher

16.6:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Denver-Aurora-Centennial area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$12,821

per year

Toddler (Center)

$11,897

per year

Preschool (Center)

$11,013

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Denver-Aurora-Centennial's composite Life Score is 39.7/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

6/100

Bottom decile

Wages

93/100

Elite

Rent

7/100

Bottom decile

Crime

6/100

Bottom decile

Schools

63/100

Above average

Childcare

23/100

Weak

Environment

92/100

Elite

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Denver-Aurora-Centennial ranks #377 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 26.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (93/100)

Job market

93
Schools

37
Low hazard

37
Climate

15
Housing

7
Safety

7
Cost of living

6
Air quality

3

What this shows Denver-Aurora-Centennial's strongest dimensions are job market and schools; its weakest among scored dims is air quality at 3/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Denver-Aurora-Centennial to

Florence Fond du Lac Fort Collins-Loveland Fort Smith Fort Wayne Fresno

Metros near Denver-Aurora-Centennial on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Denver-Aurora-Centennial on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Denver-Aurora-Centennial cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Denver-Aurora-Centennial wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Denver-Aurora-Centennial?

Denver-Aurora-Centennial runs a $78,519 median salary at a 105.8 cost index, ranking #377 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Denver-Aurora-Centennial's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Denver-Aurora-Centennial head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Denver-Aurora-Centennial
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.