The 17 core-based statistical areas in the U.S. State of Colorado.

The U.S. State of Colorado has 20 statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Statistical areas are important geographic delineations of population clusters used by the OMB, the United States Census Bureau, planning organizations, and federal, state, and local government entities.

On July 21, 2023, the OMB delineated three combined statistical areas, seven metropolitan statistical areas, and ten micropolitan statistical areas in Colorado. The most populous of these statistical areas is the 12-county Denver–Aurora–Greeley, CO Combined Statistical Area with a United States Census Bureau estimated population of 3,752,505 as of July 1, 2024.

The Denver–Aurora–Greeley, CO Combined Statistical Area, the Colorado Springs, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, the Fort Collins–Loveland, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, the Pueblo-Cañon City, CO Combined Statistical Area, and the Cheyenne, WY Metropolitan Statistical Area comprise what is known as the Front Range Urban Corridor.

Statistical areas

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has designated more than 1,000 statistical areas for the United States and Puerto Rico. These statistical areas are important geographic delineations of population clusters used by the OMB, the United States Census Bureau, planning organizations, and federal, state, and local government entities.

The OMB defines a core-based statistical area (commonly referred to as a CBSA) as the county or counties (or county-equivalents) surrounding at least one densely-settled core of at least 10,000 population, "plus adjacent counties having a high degree of social and economic integration with the core as measured through commuting ties with the counties containing the core". The OMB further divides core-based statistical areas based on population into metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) for those with at least 50,000 and micropolitan statistical areas (μSAs) for those with 10,000 to 49,999 people.

The OMB defines a combined statistical area (CSA) as two or more adjacent core-based statistical areas where the employment interchange rate (% commuting from A to B plus % commuting from B to A) is at least 15%. The primary statistical areas (PSAs) include all combined statistical areas and any core-based statistical area that is not a constituent of a combined statistical area.

Colorado statistical areas

The following table contains each of the 64 Colorado counties with their statistical areas and their population as estimated by the United States Census Bureau for July 1, 2025.

The 64 counties and 20 statistical areas of the State of Colorado
64 counties17 core-based statistical areas3 combined statistical areas
county2025 population estimateCBSA2025 population estimateCSA2025 population estimate
City and County of Denver740,613Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO MSA3,092,037Denver-Aurora-Greeley, CO CSA3,799,023
Arapahoe County673,820
Jefferson County580,451
Adams County554,668
Douglas County399,396
City and County of Broomfield79,174
Elbert County30,534
Park County18,314
Clear Creek County8,994
Gilpin County6,073
Weld County378,426Greeley, CO MSA378,426
Boulder County328,560Boulder, CO MSA328,560
El Paso County757,040Colorado Springs, CO MSA781,796none
Teller County24,756
Larimer County377,292Fort Collins-Loveland, CO MSA377,292
Pueblo County169,277Pueblo, CO MSA169,277Pueblo-Cañon City, CO CSA219,316
Fremont County50,039Cañon City, CO μSA50,039
Mesa County162,845Grand Junction, CO MSA162,845none
Garfield County63,474Rifle, CO μSA80,099Edwards-Rifle, CO CSA134,390
Pitkin County16,625
Eagle County54,291Edwards, CO μSA54,291
La Plata County56,898Durango, CO μSA56,898none
Montrose County44,591Montrose, CO μSA44,591
Routt County25,329Steamboat Springs, CO μSA38,451
Moffat County13,122
Summit County31,517Breckenridge, CO μSA39,069
Lake County7,552
Morgan County30,306Fort Morgan, CO μSA30,306
Alamosa County16,688Alamosa, CO μSA27,896
Conejos County7,529
Costilla County3,679
Logan County20,654Sterling, CO μSA20,654
Delta County32,178none
Montezuma County26,678
Chaffee County20,831
Otero County17,683
Gunnison County17,439
Grand County16,496
Las Animas County14,391
Archuleta County14,306
Prowers County11,884
Rio Grande County11,087
Yuma County9,896
San Miguel County7,753
Kit Carson County7,069
Huerfano County7,011
Saguache County6,732
Rio Blanco County6,683
Bent County5,716
Crowley County5,677
Lincoln County5,645
Custer County5,590
Ouray County5,265
Washington County4,732
Phillips County4,420
Baca County3,347
Dolores County2,466
Sedgwick County2,247
Cheyenne County1,713
Kiowa County1,412
Jackson County1,211
Mineral County910
San Juan County813
Hinsdale County753
All 64 Colorado counties6,012,561The 17 Colorado core-based statistical areas5,732,527The 3 Colorado combined statistical areas4,152,729

Colorado core-based statistical areas

The following table provides the in-state population rank of each of the 17 Colorado core-based statistical areas with their population histories.

The 17 core-based statistical areas of the State of Colorado
2025 rankCore-based statistical areaPopulation
2025 estimateChange2020 CensusChange2010 CensusChange2000 Census
1Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO MSA3,092,037+4.33%2,963,821+16.53%2,543,482+16.70%2,179,476
2Colorado Springs, CO MSA781,796+3.53%755,105+16.96%645,613+20.12%537,475
3Greeley, CO MSA378,426+15.03%328,981+30.12%252,825+39.86%180,766
4Fort Collins-Loveland, CO MSA377,292+5.08%359,066+19.84%299,630+19.14%251,494
5Boulder, CO MSA328,560−0.66%330,758+12.29%294,567+9.19%269,784
6Pueblo, CO MSA169,277+0.66%168,162+5.72%159,063+12.42%141,490
7Grand Junction, CO MSA162,845+4.59%155,703+6.12%146,723+25.47%116,939
8Rifle, CO μSA80,099+1.34%79,043+7.49%73,537+25.33%58,675
9Durango, CO μSA56,898+2.26%55,638+8.38%51,334+16.78%43,957
10Edwards, CO μSA54,291−2.58%55,731+6.77%52,197+25.40%41,623
11Cañon City, CO μSA50,039+2.25%48,939+4.52%46,824+1.48%46,140
12Montrose, CO μSA44,591+4.48%42,679+3.40%41,276+23.44%33,438
13Steamboat Springs, CO μSA38,451+0.87%38,121+2.19%37,304+13.53%32,857
14Breckenridge, CO μSA39,069+1.50%38,491+9.03%35,304+12.53%31,374
15Fort Morgan, CO μSA30,306+4.10%29,111+3.38%28,159+3.63%27,172
16Alamosa, CO μSA27,896+2.05%27,336+0.41%27,225+0.74%27,026
17Sterling, CO μSA20,654−4.06%21,528−5.20%22,709+10.42%20,566
The 17 Colorado core-based statistical areas5,732,527+4.26%5,498,213+15.56%4,757,772+17.76%4,040,252

Colorado combined statistical areas

The following table provides the in-state population rank of each of the three Colorado combined statistical areas with their population histories.

The three combined statistical areas of the State of Colorado
2025 rankCombined statistical areaPopulation
2025 estimateChange2020 CensusChange2010 CensusChange2000 Census
1Denver-Aurora-Greeley, CO CSA3,799,023+4.84%3,623,560+17.23%3,090,874+17.52%2,630,026
2Pueblo-Cañon City, CO CSA219,316+1.02%217,101+5.45%205,887+9.73%187,630
3Edwards-Rifle, CO CSA134,390−0.28%134,774+7.19%125,734+25.36%100,298
The 3 Colorado combined statistical areas4,152,729+4.46%3,975,435+16.16%3,422,495+17.29%2,917,954

See also

Notes

External links

38°59′50″N 105°32′52″W/38.9972°N 105.5478°W/ 38.9972; -105.5478(State of Colorado)