Town · Saguache County, Colorado

Center, Colorado

Center is a town in Saguache County, Colorado. It has 2,120 residents. Center, Colorado has a quality-of-life score of 35 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,128 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Colorado it ranks #178 of 220 cities and towns. It ranks best on hot days (low), suicide rate (low) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (low). It ranks worst on job growth (low), distance to an emergency room (high) and flu vaccinations (low).

35Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,128 of 15,651 cities and towns
Colorado: #178 of 220 in CO
Population: 2,120 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 2,161.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 0812855

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 70 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety37#9,904/15,637
Economy10#14,141/15,631
Housing59#6,190/14,977
Health45#8,603/15,609
Healthcare2#15,386/15,650
Environment96#585/15,453
Education38#9,658/15,649
Infrastructure57#6,784/15,650
Community32#10,600/15,651
Leisure & amenities45#8,651/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Center, Colorado ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Saguache County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Hot days · low0 days
100/100Colorado 23 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationSaguache County value
Suicide rate · low0.0 /100k
100/100Colorado 22.4 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100k2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionSaguache County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low3.9 µg/m³
99/100Colorado 5.8 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySaguache County value
Firearm deaths · low0.0 /100k
99/100Colorado 15.5 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSaguache County value
Grocery stores · high4.5 /10k
99/100Colorado 1.0 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSaguache County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.32%
96/100Colorado 0.50%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090

Weaknesses

Job growth · low-9.1%
0/100Colorado -0.7%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataSaguache County value
Distance to an emergency room · high27.3 mi
1/100Colorado 5.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesSaguache County value
Flu vaccinations · low20.0%
1/100Colorado 46.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSaguache County value
Traffic deaths · high51.6 /100k
1/100Colorado 11.9 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataSaguache County value
Pharmacies · low0.0 /10k
1/100Colorado 0.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSaguache County value
Unemployment rate · high18.0%
1/100Colorado 4.0%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
52.3% (2015-2019) → 87.5% (2020-2024)
+35 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
45.4% (2015-2019) → 14.0% (2020-2024)
−31 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
57.6% (2015-2019) → 81.5% (2020-2024)
+24 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
26.3% (2015-2019) → 12.3% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Child poverty rateImproving
36.0% (2015-2019) → 22.2% (2020-2024)
−14 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Unemployment rateWorsening
5.3% (2015-2019) → 18.1% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Center, Colorado improved on 2 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

High school++24 points57.6% → 81.5%
Broadband+35 points52.3% → 87.5%

Declined1

Unemployment+13 points5.3% → 18.1%

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Center, Colorado between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	14.5 min2015-2019	12.5 min2020-2024	−2.0 min	Within the margin of error	71%
Broadband subscriptions	52.3%2015-2019	87.5%2020-2024	+35 points	Improved	99%
Child poverty rate	36.0%2015-2019	22.2%2020-2024	−14 points	Within the margin of error	88%
Effective property tax rate	0.55%2015-2019	0.32%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	64%
High school diploma or higher	57.6%2015-2019	81.5%2020-2024	+24 points	Improved	100%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	2.8×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	61%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4282015-2019	0.4362020-2024	+0.008	Within the margin of error	43%
Median household income	$32,2502015-2019	$45,7502020-2024	+42%	Within the margin of error	76%
Poverty rate	26.1%2015-2019	19.9%2020-2024	−6.1 points	Within the margin of error	85%
Unemployment rate	5.3%2015-2019	18.1%2020-2024	+13 points	Declined	0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	17.1%2015-2019	18.7%2020-2024	+1.7 points	Within the margin of error	28%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Center, Colorado five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Center, Colorado in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Center, Colorado itself moved +7.3 points in standing on average over the same 7 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

2,120 residents (±261)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

1,031 households (±151)

Center, Colorado
Colorado share

Under $25k30%†310
$25k–50k21%†214
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

1,031 households (±151)

Center, Colorado
Colorado share

Own70%720
Rent30%†311

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+15.1 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

881 workers (±181)

Center, Colorado
Colorado share

Drive alone70%619
Carpool25%†220
Public transit0.0%0

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Saguache County, the county holding most of Center's residents.

Saguache County has 130 employer establishments, 194 for every 10,000 residents (0.78× the US rate of 248; 0.63× Colorado's), with 791 paid employees at an average annual pay of $39,461. The Census Bureau also counts 738 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 130; 738 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 194; US 248 · Colorado 309
Paid employees: 791
Average annual pay: $39,461; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Saguache County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	13	19.4	1.25×More than typical	41	$50,220	84
Religious organizations	10	14.9	2.69×More than typical	27	$33,852	—
Ambulatory health care services	7	10.4	0.50×Too few to compare	56	$35,714	46
Building equipment contractors	7	10.4	1.74×Too few to compare	22	$44,318	11
Construction of buildings	7	10.4	1.38×Too few to compare	11	$72,364	47
Truck transportation	7	10.4	2.06×Too few to compare	15	$33,333	15
Electrical contractors and wiring installation	6	8.9	3.62×Too few to compare	20	$46,500	6
Full-service restaurants	6	8.9	1.17×Too few to compare	40	$24,875	3
Grocery and convenience stores	6	8.9	3.02×Too few to compare	53	$30,925	—
Restaurants and other eating places	6	8.9	0.49×Too few to compare	40	$24,875	4
Lessors of real estate	5	7.5	0.61×Too few to compare	10	$24,400	43
Real estate agents and brokers	4	6	1.23×Too few to compare	8	$28,750	8

Rank places for an industry Open Saguache County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 6,704 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

No federal contract obligations recorded here in FY2026.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Center is mostly in Saguache County.

See federal money in Saguache County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Center, Colorado is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Jeff HurdR-CO-3 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 0.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Other cities and towns in Saguache County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/0812855

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends