The salary range for a software engineer in Colorado runs from $96,480 at the 10th percentile to $213,010 at the 90th percentile. The middle of the market sits between $122,470 at the 25th percentile and $173,000 at the 75th percentile, which is the range most employers will be working within for experienced hires. Use the seniority and specialization of your specific role to determine where within that band your offer should land.
Software engineer salary in Colorado (2026)
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The average software engineer salary in Colorado is $150,940 per year. A small pool of very high earners pulls that average upward, so the median of $138,390 gives employers a more reliable starting point for most hiring decisions. Colorado employs 43,320 software engineers, and the $12,550 gap between the mean and median reflects real variation in the candidate pool you will be evaluating. Junior engineers in Colorado typically earn around $96,480, while senior specialists reach and exceed the $213,010 level at the 90th percentile. Plan for a range rather than a single number when budgeting for a software engineer hire in Colorado, and anchor that range to the seniority and specialization of the role you are filling.
Metric / Value
Metric | Value |
Median Annual Salary | $138,390 |
Average Annual Salary | $150,940 |
vs. National Average | 1.9% above the national mean of $148,100 |
Data comes from the BLS OEWS and covers 43,320 employed software engineers across Colorado.
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Software engineer salary percentiles in Colorado
Percentile | Annual Salary |
10th Percentile | $96,480 |
25th Percentile | $122,470 |
75th Percentile | $173,000 |
90th Percentile | $213,010 |
Employers hiring mid-level software engineers in Colorado should expect offers in the $122,470 to $173,000 range to be competitive for most candidates. Senior specialists who reach the 90th percentile command $213,010 or more, so roles requiring deep specialization or leadership responsibility will require a budget well above the median.
Software engineer salary by city in Colorado
City | Average Annual Salary |
Boulder | $166,480 |
Denver | $149,400 |
Greeley | $147,060 |
Fort Collins | $144,720 |
Colorado Springs | $144,420 |
Where you hire within Colorado will meaningfully affect your compensation budget for software engineers. Boulder commands the highest average at $166,480, which is $17,080 above the Denver metro average of $149,400 and over $22,000 above Colorado Springs at $144,420. If your team is distributed across multiple Colorado locations, plan for city-level variation when setting offer ranges rather than relying on a single statewide figure.
How Colorado compares to other states
State | Average Annual Salary | Median Annual Salary |
Colorado | $150,940 | $138,390 |
California | $186,770 | $174,410 |
Washington | $171,040 | $166,540 |
Texas | $136,450 | $132,150 |
Arizona | $132,530 | $129,690 |
Utah | $129,860 | $128,810 |
Colorado sits in a middle tier for software engineer compensation, making it a more cost-effective market than California or Washington but more expensive than Texas, Arizona, and Utah. California's average of $186,770 and Washington's $171,040 both exceed Colorado's $150,940 by a meaningful margin, while Texas at $136,450 and Utah at $129,860 offer lower average costs. Employers competing for talent across state lines should factor these differences into remote and hybrid compensation policies.
Frequently asked questions about software engineer salary in Colorado
What is the salary range for a software engineer in Colorado?
Software Engineer salary by state
Data sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), 2025, SOC code 15-1252 (Software Developers).
Disclaimer
Rippling and its affiliates do not provide tax, accounting or legal advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide or be relied on for tax, accounting or legal advice. You should consult your own tax, accounting and legal advisors before engaging in any related activities or transactions.
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