Colorado Paycheck Calculator
Using 2026 federal and Colorado tax figures · last checked
Short answer
A $60,000 salary in Colorado takes home about $47,750 a year — roughly $3,979 a month — after $5,020 federal income tax and $4,590 in Social Security and Medicare, plus $2,640 in Colorado state income tax. That is an effective rate of 20.4%. The figure excludes Colorado local income tax, which is charged separately by municipality.
The question most people arrive with is simple: gross pay says one number, the deposit says another, where did the difference go? In Colorado the answer is federal income tax, FICA, and Colorado state tax on top. Put your gross in and the breakdown is itemised line by line.
Before any deductions.
Estimated take-home pay
$1,602.85
- Gross pay
- $2,000.00
- Federal income tax
- −$156.15
- Social Security
- −$124.00
- Medicare
- −$29.00
- Colorado state tax
- −$88.00
- Total withheld
- −$397.15
This estimate excludes local tax. Colorado levies a flat monthly occupational privilege tax in a handful of cities — Denver, Aurora and Greenwood Village among them. Those are withheld on top of everything shown above, so your actual take-home will be lower than this figure. Check your municipality's rate with its income tax department or your employer's payroll office.
Figures on this page are estimates produced from the inputs you provide. A pay stub you generate documents what you enter; it is not a verified employment record issued by an employer. If you need official proof of income, request it from your employer or download your wage transcript free from the IRS.
Colorado income tax brackets
| Rate | Taxable income |
|---|---|
| 4.4% | All taxable income (flat rate) |
Minimum wage in Colorado: $14.42/hr
What comes out of every paycheck
The FICA pair is fixed by federal law rather than by Colorado. Social Security withholds 6.2% until annual wages reach $184,500, after which it stops for the rest of the year — which is why some people see their net pay rise late in the year. Medicare withholds 1.45% throughout, plus 0.9% on anything over $200,000.
Colorado uses a flat 4.4% income tax rate, recently reduced from 4.55%. The state also launched FAMLI, a mandatory paid leave insurance program that adds a small deduction to every paycheck.
Colorado's Flat Tax and FAMLI
Colorado keeps it simple with a flat 4.4% state income tax — dropped from 4.55% in 2024 via voter-approved Proposition 121. Every dollar of taxable income is taxed at the same rate, whether you earn $30,000 or $300,000. Starting in 2024, the FAMLI (Family and Medical Leave Insurance) program added a new line item: 0.9% of wages split between employer and employee (you pay 0.45%). For a $60,000 salary, that is about $270 per year — roughly $10 per biweekly check. Denver does not have a city income tax, but it does levy a small occupational privilege tax of $5.75/month for employees.
Working in Denver vs Other Colorado Cities
Denver's $5.75/month head tax is the only "local tax" you will see on your paycheck. Aurora, Colorado Springs, and Fort Collins have no local payroll taxes. The $14.42 minimum wage applies statewide and adjusts with inflation each January. Colorado employers are required to provide pay stubs that list hours, gross pay, deductions, and net pay. If you work in the ski industry or other seasonal jobs, your income can fluctuate wildly — use our calculator to estimate your actual take-home for any given pay period.
Take-home pay at common salaries in Colorado
Each row below is the same calculation at a different gross. What changes is the effective rate, which runs 19.2% to 28.5% in Colorado — a consequence of graduated brackets rather than any change in the rules.
Hourly rates in Colorado
Hourly rates and salaries meet at 2,080 hours. On that basis $18 an hour in Colorado produces about $30,616 in annual take-home, before overtime.
| Hourly | Annual gross | Annual take-home | Net per hour |
|---|---|---|---|
| $14/hr | $29,120 | $24,297 | $11.68 |
| $16/hr | $33,280 | $27,456 | $13.20 |
| $18/hr | $37,440 | $30,616 | $14.72 |
| $22/hr | $45,760 | $36,935 | $17.76 |
| $28/hr | $58,240 | $46,413 | $22.31 |
| $35/hr | $72,800 | $56,842 | $27.33 |
Based on 2,080 hours a year — 40 hours a week, 52 weeks. Excludes overtime and unpaid leave.
How filing status changes it
The four filing statuses are not variations on one calculation — each has a distinct standard deduction and distinct bracket boundaries. On $60,000 that produces a $2,180 range in what you keep, topped by Married filing jointly.
| Filing status | Federal tax | Take-home |
|---|---|---|
| Single | $5,020 | $47,750 |
| Married filing jointly | $2,840 | $49,930 |
| Married filing separately | $5,020 | $47,750 |
| Head of household | $3,948 | $48,822 |
On a $60,000 salary in Colorado.
How accurate is this estimate?
The number this produces is the tax arithmetic and nothing else. Real stubs carry more: employer benefit deductions, retirement contributions, and any adjustment your W-4 requests. Each of those moves the total, so use this to sanity-check the shape of a stub rather than to match it to the cent.
Colorado paycheck questions
What is the FAMLI deduction on my Colorado paycheck?
FAMLI is Colorado's paid family and medical leave program. You pay 0.45% of your wages and your employer pays 0.45%. On a $70,000 salary, your share is about $315 per year.
Does Denver have a city income tax?
Denver does not have a city income tax, but it does charge an Occupational Privilege Tax (OPT) of $5.75 per month per employee. Your employer also pays $4.00/month.
How pay frequency changes your cheque
People often ask whether switching to fortnightly pay costs them more tax. It does not. Across a full year in Colorado the total is the same; the difference is cash-flow, not liability. These are the per-cheque figures on $60,000, filing single.
| Paid | Cheques/yr | Gross each | Take-home each |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly | 52 | $1,154 | $918 |
| Every two weeks | 26 | $2,308 | $1,837 |
| Twice a month | 24 | $2,500 | $1,990 |
| Monthly | 12 | $5,000 | $3,979 |
Turn this into a pay stub
The next step for most people is turning this into something printable. That option exists, with one honest caveat: a stub you generate reflects your own inputs. Where a third party needs verified income, the free and official routes are your employer's payroll department or an IRS wage transcript.
Open the pay stub generatorIf you need official proof of income
Before generating anything, try the official sources — they are free. Employers are obliged to keep payroll records and can usually reprint stubs, and the IRS issues wage and income transcripts at no charge. A third party can confirm both, which is the point of asking. Get an IRS transcript.