Taxes in COS

All about taxes in Colorado Springs (COS)! Colorado Springs is considered a very low tax area of the country to live, especially compared to other major cities. Our taxes are paid in several pieces. Check out this hand tool to calculate tax rates!

1. State Income Taxes – The state income tax rate is 4.63% for 2018. It is primarily based on your Federal taxable income, so the state tax form is very simple to complete. Pretty much anything that is deductible for Federal taxes is also deductible for state purposes. For more information see the Colorado Department of Revenue web site.
2. Sales Taxes – In the Colorado Springs area, sales tax is 8.20%.
3. Property Taxes – Property taxes vary a lot based on where you live. Property taxes are the main source of revenue for schools in Colorado. GENERALLY, we plan for property taxes to be roughly 0.75% of the market value of the home. This is higher in certain areas where Special Improvement districts exist (such as Flying Horse Ranch, where the planning figure is closer to 1.25%) and lower in some of the older sections of the city (particularly in school district 11), where the figure is often closer to 0.5%. Because valuation is not precise and tax rates vary significantly, the only way to know for sure what taxes will look like is to check the assessors office information for a specific property.

Current City Sales & Use Tax Rate:

Effective January 1, 2021, the City of Colorado Springs sales and use tax rate has decreased from 3.12% to 3.07% for all transactions occurring on or after that date.

The combined amount is 8.20%, broken out as follows:

• 3.07% City of Colorado Springs (self-collected)
  • 2.00% General Fund
  • 0.10% Trails, Open Space and Parks (TOPS)
  • 0.40% Public Safety Sales Tax (PSST)
  • 0.57% 2C Road Tax
  • Restricted Use: TOPS, PSST, 2C Road Tax
  • Collected by the Colorado Department of Revenue: State of Colorado, El Paso County, and PPRTA

  Office Location (8am-5pm, M-F)northwest corner of Colorado and Nevada, downtown Colorado Springs

  City of Colorado Springs / Sales Tax Office

  30 S Nevada Avenue, Suite 203Colorado Springs, CO 80903

  TABOR

  Colorado enacted something called the Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR) in 1992 that severely limits the ability of government at any level to raise taxes without taxpayers voting on it. TABOR has forced a significant level of discipline into local government spending, although it has also forced some very difficult decisions during hard economic times. Essentially, voters must approve all tax increases and the bill provides a cap on the amount of revenue that can be retained and spent.