Cost of Living in Denver, CO (2026): What Renters Should Budget

Updated September 2026. Rent figures reflect Apartment List data as of August 2026.

According to the Apartment List Rent Index, the median rent across all apartment sizes in Denver is $1,616 as of August 2026, with one-bedrooms at $1,430 and two-bedrooms at $1,781. That runs about 16% above the national median of $1,390.

Denver rent is falling faster than the country's and still sitting above it. The city median dropped 3.93% over the past year against 0.76% nationally, and it remains $226 a month above the national figure. If you are signing a lease here soon, the direction is on your side; if you are weighing Denver against a cheaper city, the level still is not.

Denver Cost of Living at a Glance

Rent anchors this guide, and the advertised price covers one part of the monthly bill. The figures below set a starting range for Denver.

Rent values are Apartment List August 2026 city-level estimates. Full method and sources are in the appendix.

How to use these numbers: Start with the rent for the unit size you're considering. Add the planning estimates that apply to you, then replace them with listing-specific charges and your expected usage.

The gas row says no single figure because Xcel's rates change on October 6, so anything calculated now would be wrong within weeks. The electricity figure prices the flat-rate plan, and a newer meter puts you on time-of-day pricing instead; both sections below explain.

What Is the Median Rent in Denver in 2026?

The median one-bedroom rent in Denver is $1,430 as of August 2026, according to the Apartment List Rent Index. Two-bedrooms run $1,781 and the all-sizes median is $1,616.

Rent here is falling, and faster than the national trend. Denver rents dropped 3.93% over the past year, while the national median fell 0.76%. Month over month the city median was essentially flat, up 0.08%.

These are citywide figures, and they do not establish what any individual building is asking or offering. Ask each property directly about concessions, fees, and the move-in total, then compare the quote you get with the medians above.

How the City Median Compares With the Metro Median

According to the Apartment List Rent Index, the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metro median is $1,650 across all apartment sizes as of August 2026, against the city's $1,616. That comparison does not survive being broken out by unit size.

At one bedroom the two medians are the same figure. At two bedrooms the city runs 4.2% above the metro, the opposite direction from the all-sizes number. So the unit size you are searching for decides which comparison applies, and the all-sizes figure does not describe any of the three cases well.

The metro figure covers Denver alongside Aurora, Lakewood, and the rest of the surrounding area, so treat it as a part-and-whole comparison. It does not tell you what any specific area outside the city costs, and it is not a read on whether moving outward saves money.

How Does Denver Rent Compare With Other Western Cities?

The table sets Denver against selected Mountain West and Southwest cities, its closest in-state alternatives, and the national median. It is not a ranking of every Western rental market.

All figures are Apartment List medians as of August 2026.

Denver is the second most expensive city in this table, behind Boulder. Phoenix and Salt Lake City sit at the same median to the dollar, $362 below Denver, and Albuquerque is $397 below. Closer to home, Colorado Springs runs $257 less and Aurora, inside Denver's own metro, runs $91 less.

Against the national median, Denver is $226 higher. These are rent medians, not total-cost comparisons, so before treating a lower-cost city as savings, compare the same unit size and price the commute in each place.

What Income Corresponds to Denver Rent at the 30% Benchmark?

Using Apartment List's August 2026 median one-bedroom rent of $1,430, the rent-only 30% calculation corresponds to about $57,200 in annual gross income.

Each income figure is the monthly rent multiplied by 12 and divided by 0.30, calculated from the unrounded medians. The shared row assumes an equal split of the two-bedroom median, which is $890.50 before rounding.

These are gross income figures covering rent alone. The 30% share is the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) affordability measure, which counts utilities inside it where these do not, so add utilities on top. They are planning benchmarks rather than salary requirements or screening rules, and the Apartment List Cost of Living Calculator asks for after-tax income, which will produce a different estimate.

How Do You Set a Rent Ceiling for a Specific Listing?

The median tells you the middle of the market, but you rent one specific unit. Work backward from your income:

1. Take your gross annual income.
2. Multiply by 0.30 to get the annual rent your budget supports at the 30% benchmark.
3. Divide by 12 for a monthly rent ceiling.

On a $70,000 gross salary that is about $1,750 a month. Denver's one-bedroom median is $1,430 (Apartment List, August 2026), which leaves about $320 between the median and that ceiling. Water and electricity at the planning figures above account for $136 of it, leaving about $184 before gas, which this guide does not price.

Then check the listing detail page for the charges rent alone hides: application, admin, pet, and parking fees are disclosed per unit. Apartment List does not charge renters a fee of its own, so the numbers you are budgeting for belong to the property.

Rent here is falling, so ask each building what concessions it is currently offering.

What Should You Budget Beyond Rent in Denver?

Electricity

Xcel Energy supplies electricity, and what you pay depends on which meter your apartment has. On the flat-rate plan, 500 kWh a month runs about $100 in summer and about $85 in winter, before taxes.

That is expensive. Denver's figure works out above both the Colorado and national average residential rates (EIA, June 2026), and the taxes left out of it only widen the gap. Power is around 7% of what a median one-bedroom costs here.

The flat plan is the opt-out, not the default. If your apartment has a newer digital meter you are on time-of-day pricing, where summer power costs substantially more in the late afternoon than overnight, so the same 500 kWh can land in very different places depending on when you run the dryer and the air conditioning. There is no single figure for that plan, which is why the one above is the flat-rate number.

Two questions for the building: which plan the meter is on, and what a recent January bill came to on a similar apartment.

Natural Gas

Xcel is the gas provider as well. Denver's heating season runs long, so if your unit heats with gas this is a winter cost rather than a year-round one.

This guide states no gas figure, because the rates change on October 6, 2026. The approved settlement raises average residential bills about 8.6%, or $5.16 a month, so anything calculated now would be wrong within weeks.

Before you sign, ask whether the unit heats with gas or electricity, who pays the heating bill, and what the highest winter bill was on a comparable apartment. That last answer is specific to the building.

Water

Denver Water charges a fixed monthly amount plus a rate for what you use. On a standard residential meter inside the city that is $20.91 a month plus $3.02 per 1,000 gallons at the cheapest rate. At 5,000 gallons the bill comes to about $36.

Two things move it. Your cheapest-rate allowance is set by your winter use, calculated from your January through March bills and set between 5,000 and 15,000 gallons, so the figure above sits at the bottom of that range. And a temporary drought charge runs through April 2027, though it does not touch the cheapest rate.

Denver Water bills water only. Sewer and stormwater are separate City of Denver charges on the same statement, so your actual water-related total runs higher than $36.

RTD Fares and Driving Costs

Denver is spread out, so whether you need a car depends on your specific address and commute. The Regional Transportation District runs bus and light rail across the metro. A standard fare is $2.75 and covers three hours, so a round trip inside that window costs one fare. A day pass is $5.50 and a monthly pass is $88.

Fare capping means you never pay more than the day or monthly price, but it applies only when you pay with Tap-n-Ride or a signed-in MyRide account. Riders 19 and under and active-duty military ride free, and seniors 65 and over, Medicare recipients, riders with disabilities, and LiVE enrollees pay $1.35 a ride and $27 a month. Trips to or from Denver International Airport need an Airport Day Pass at $10, which discount fares already include.

Before you sign, check whether a route connects your building to where you work, and whether it reaches a light-rail station. If it does not, plan for a car payment, insurance, fuel, and winter tires as a fixed monthly cost.

Groceries

For a single adult, the USDA moderate-cost food plan runs about $440 a month. The USDA figure is national and is not specific to Denver, so use it as a starting point and adjust it for how often you eat out.

How Do Solo and Shared Denver Budgets Compare?

Splitting a two-bedroom equally costs about $540 a month less per renter than paying for a one-bedroom on your own, or roughly $6,474 a year. Almost all of that comes from the rent line, since groceries do not split at all. Two renters also share one heating bill rather than paying two. That $891 share corresponds to about $35,620 in annual gross income at the rent-only 30% benchmark, against $57,200 for the one-bedroom.

Rent values are Apartment List August 2026 city-level estimates. The shared column assumes two renters splitting the median two-bedroom rent, one electricity bill, and one water bill equally. There is no total row because gas is not priced on this page, and in a city with a long heating season a total without it would mislead. Both columns also exclude sewer and stormwater, transit, internet, insurance, parking, and a car.

Denver's Two-Bedroom Median Runs $351 Above Its One-Bedroom

A two-bedroom runs $351 more than a one-bedroom at the median, or about 24.6% above the one-bedroom figure (Apartment List, August 2026). That is a wider step than the roughly 19.5% typical across the 50 largest U.S. cities.

That is the price of the larger apartment, not the price per person. Split equally between two renters, it comes to about $891 each, roughly $540 a month less than paying the one-bedroom median on your own.

What Should You Confirm Before Paying an Application Fee?

• Which Xcel rate schedule the meter is on, and whether it is an advanced meter
• Whether the unit heats with gas or electricity, and who pays the heating bill
• What the highest winter energy bill was on a comparable unit in the building
• Whether water, sewer, and trash are billed to you, allocated across the building, or included in rent
• Every unit-level fee: application, admin, pet, and parking, all disclosed on the listing detail page
• Any concessions the building is currently offering, such as waived fees or a free month
• Whether an RTD route connects your building to your commute, and whether it reaches light rail

Ask the property for its total move-in amount in writing before paying anything. Apartment List does not charge renters a fee, so every fee you are checking for belongs to the property.

How Do You Find Lower Rent in Denver?

The medians above are citywide. Which Denver neighborhoods cost least, how they compare on walkability and commute, and how they score on published safety data are questions the neighborhood guides answer in full:

• Cheapest neighborhoods in Denver
• Best neighborhoods in Denver
• Safest neighborhoods in Denver

Aurora, inside the same metro, has a median $91 below the city of Denver, and Colorado Springs is $257 below. Whether either translates into savings depends on what the commute costs you in time and money.

To bring rent down without changing neighborhoods, the Apartment List Rent Calculator sizes an affordable range from your income and surfaces matching Denver units, and Rate My Rent grades a specific listing against comparable local apartments. That grade is a starting point for questions to ask the building, not a verdict on the unit.

Compare Denver With Your Current City

If you are moving to Denver from somewhere else, compare total cost rather than rent alone. The Apartment List Cost of Living Calculator compares two cities using after-tax income and includes data from the Council for Community and Economic Research.

Denver rent fell 3.93% over the past year while the national median fell 0.76%, and it still sits $226 above that national figure (Apartment List, August 2026). Falling and above-average describe the same market here, so price the specific unit rather than the trend.

Browse Denver apartments and start comparing real listings.

Appendix: Methodology and Data Sources

Income figures are calculations based on the cited Apartment List rent medians and the 30% rent-to-income benchmark, not measured income data.

Frequently Asked Questions About Denver Rent & Cost of Living

What Is the Average Rent in Denver?

According to the Apartment List Rent Index, the median all-sizes rent in Denver is $1,616 as of August 2026, with one-bedrooms at $1,430 and two-bedrooms at $1,781. Apartment List reports a median rather than an average, because a median better represents a typical apartment and is less distorted by a handful of luxury units.

Is Denver Rent Going Up or Down?

Down. According to the Apartment List Rent Index, the Denver city median fell 3.93% over the twelve months to August 2026, while the national median fell 0.76%. Month over month it was essentially flat, up 0.08%. These are citywide figures and do not establish what any specific building is asking.

How Does Denver Rent Compare With Other Western Cities?

According to the Apartment List Rent Index, Denver's all-sizes median of $1,616 as of August 2026 is the second highest in the set compared here, behind Boulder at $1,896. Phoenix and Salt Lake City sit at the same median, $1,254, which is $362 below Denver, and Albuquerque is $397 below. Colorado Springs runs $257 less and Aurora $91 less. Denver sits $226 above the national median of $1,390.

Is Rent Cheaper Inside Denver City Limits Than in the Metro?

It depends on the unit size, and the direction is not consistent. According to the Apartment List Rent Index, across all apartment sizes the city median of $1,616 is 2.1% below the $1,650 metro median as of August 2026. At one bedroom the two are the same figure, $1,430. At two bedrooms the city median of $1,781 is 4.2% above the metro's $1,710. Use the unit size you are actually searching for rather than the all-sizes figure.

How Much More Does a Two-Bedroom Cost Than a One-Bedroom in Denver?

About $351 a month. The median one-bedroom is $1,430 and the median two-bedroom is $1,781 as of August 2026, according to the Apartment List Rent Index. That step is about 24.6% of the one-bedroom rent, wider than the roughly 19.5% typical across the 50 largest U.S. cities. It is the cost of the larger apartment, not the cost per person: two renters splitting that two-bedroom equally would pay about $891 each.

What Salary Do You Need to Rent in Denver?

Using Apartment List's August 2026 median one-bedroom rent of $1,430, the rent-only 30% calculation corresponds to about $57,200 in annual gross income ($1,430 x 12 / 0.30). This is a planning benchmark, not a requirement, and it uses gross income, while the Apartment List Cost of Living Calculator uses after-tax income and will give a different number.

How Much Are Utilities in a Denver Apartment?

About $136 a month for electricity and water together, with gas still to come. On Xcel Energy's flat-rate opt-out schedule, 500 kWh comes to about $100 in summer and about $85 in winter. Denver Water's fixed charge plus first-tier volume rate comes to about $36 at 5,000 gallons. This guide states no gas figure, because Xcel's gas rates change on October 6, 2026. Electricity also carries a caveat: the flat rate is the opt-out plan, and the default schedule for a home with an advanced meter charges by time of day instead. Ask each building which rate schedule its meter is on and what a recent winter bill came to.

How Do Solo and Shared Denver Budgets Compare?

According to the Apartment List Rent Index, at the August 2026 medians a two-bedroom costs about $891 per renter if two people split it equally, against $1,430 for a one-bedroom on your own. That is a difference of about $540 a month, or $6,474 a year, before utilities and fees. That $891 share corresponds to about $35,620 in annual gross income at the rent-only 30% benchmark.

Is 30% of Income a Hard Limit for Rent?

No. It is a widely used benchmark, and HUD treats housing costs above 30% of income, including utilities, as cost-burdened. According to Apartment List research, about 51.8% of U.S. renter households are cost-burdened and 26.1% are severely cost-burdened, spending more than half their income on housing, based on 2024 ACS data. Those are national figures, not Denver specific.