City · La Plata County, Colorado

Durango, Colorado

Durango is a city in La Plata County, Colorado, part of the Durango, CO metro area. It has 19,411 residents. Durango, Colorado has a quality-of-life score of 80 out of 100 (high), ranking #3,159 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Colorado it ranks #72 of 220 cities and towns. It ranks best on adult obesity (low), hospital quality rating (high) and average commute time (low). It ranks worst on distance to an airport (high), home price to income ratio (high) and distance to an emergency room (high).

80High

Quality-of-life score: #3,159 of 15,651 cities and towns
Colorado: #72 of 220 in CO
Population: 19,411 (2020-2024)
Land area: 18 mi²
Density: 1,098.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 0822035

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 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.

Safety24#11,909/15,637
Economy59#6,470/15,631
Housing25#11,240/14,977
Health77#3,651/15,609
Healthcare89#1,791/15,650
Environment78#3,340/15,453
Education77#3,570/15,649
Infrastructure80#3,092/15,650
Community82#2,871/15,651
Leisure & amenities90#1,605/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Durango, Colorado ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “La Plata 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

Adult obesity · low20.8%
99/100Colorado 27.1%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Hospital quality rating · high5.0
98/100Colorado 4.0United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLa Plata County value
Average commute time · low14.4 min
98/100Colorado 25.2 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low4.6 µg/m³
98/100Colorado 5.8 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyLa Plata County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.27%
98/100Colorado 0.50%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Hot days · low1 days
97/100Colorado 23 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationLa Plata County value

Weaknesses

Distance to an airport · high168 mi
2/100Colorado 40 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLa Plata County value
Home price to income ratio · high8.5×
3/100Colorado 5.7×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Distance to an emergency room · high19.3 mi
3/100Colorado 5.2 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesLa Plata County value
Suicide rate · high28.4 /100k
5/100Colorado 22.4 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataLa Plata County value
Pharmacies · low0.7 /10k
6/100Colorado 0.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsLa Plata County value
Distance to an Amtrak station · high128 mi
7/100Colorado 30 miUnited States 43 mi2026Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauLa Plata County value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
9.0 /1k (2021) → 2.5 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−72%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
81.3% (2015-2019) → 92.6% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
52.7% (2015-2019) → 60.4% (2020-2024)
+7.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
7.0× (2015-2019) → 8.5× (2020-2024)
+21%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Child poverty rateWorsening
10.0% (2015-2019) → 14.2% (2020-2024)
+4.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateWorsening
9.0% (2015-2019) → 13.0% (2020-2024)
+4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Durango, Colorado improved on 3 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 9 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++7.7 points52.7% → 60.4%
Broadband+11 points81.3% → 92.6%
Household income+19%$66,160 → $78,602

Declined2

Price / income+1.5×7.0× → 8.5×
Poverty+4 points9.0% → 13.0%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Durango, Colorado between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.6 min2015-2019	14.3 min2020-2024	−1.3 min	Within the margin of error	63%
Bachelor's degree or higher	52.7%2015-2019	60.4%2020-2024	+7.7 points	Improved	82%
Broadband subscriptions	81.3%2015-2019	92.6%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	66%
Child poverty rate	10.0%2015-2019	14.2%2020-2024	+4.2 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Effective property tax rate	0.28%2015-2019	0.27%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	17%
High school diploma or higher	97.3%2015-2019	98.0%2020-2024	+0.8 points	Within the margin of error	43%
Home price to income ratio	7.0×2015-2019	8.5×2020-2024	+1.5×	Declined	9%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5032015-2019	0.4612020-2024	−0.042	Within the margin of error	81%
Median household income	$66,1602015-2019	$78,6022020-2024	+19%	Improved	31%
Poverty rate	9.0%2015-2019	13.0%2020-2024	+4 points	Declined	16%
Rent as share of income	31.7%2015-2019	32.0%2020-2024	+0.3 points	Within the margin of error	52%
Rent-burdened households	55.7%2015-2019	53.4%2020-2024	−2.3 points	Within the margin of error	64%
Unemployment rate	4.8%2015-2019	3.1%2020-2024	−1.7 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.8%2015-2019	7.7%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	47%

“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 Durango, Colorado five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Durango, 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, Durango, Colorado itself moved +3.9 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

19,411 residents (±30)

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

8,916 households (±360)

Durango, Colorado
Colorado share

Under $25k15%1,339
$25k–50k18%1,631
$50k–75k15%1,359

Homes

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

Owners and renters

8,916 households (±360)

Durango, Colorado
Colorado share

Own53%4,726
Rent47%4,190

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

11,050 workers (±491)

Durango, Colorado
Colorado share

Drive alone64%7,021
Carpool6.1%†670
Public transit0.3%†

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Durango, CO

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 La Plata County, the county holding most of Durango's residents.

La Plata County has 2,447 employer establishments, 434 for every 10,000 residents (1.75× the US rate of 248; 1.41× Colorado's), with 20,351 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,628. The Census Bureau also counts 7,649 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,447; 7,649 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 434; US 248 · Colorado 309
Paid employees: 20,351
Average annual pay: $53,628; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	215	38.1	2.46×More than typical	1,270	$63,281	633
Ambulatory health care services	187	33.2	1.59×More than typical	1,096	$67,938	518
Lessors of real estate	165	29.3	2.37×More than typical	300	$58,350	979
Restaurants and other eating places	154	27.3	1.49×More than typical	2,452	$28,995	21
Construction of buildings	128	22.7	3.00×More than typical	494	$60,385	359
Services to buildings and dwellings	88	15.6	2.31×More than typical	337	$54,012	395
Offices of other health practitioners	85	15.1	2.48×More than typical	260	$45,065	342
Management, scientific and technical consulting	81	14.4	2.14×More than typical	177	$60,525	375
Real estate agents and brokers	79	14	2.88×More than typical	88	$77,614	174
Building equipment contractors	74	13.1	2.18×More than typical	446	$63,522	73
Full-service restaurants	68	12.1	1.57×More than typical	1,264	$32,801	10
Architectural, engineering and related services	67	11.9	3.41×More than typical	345	$89,070	111

Rank places for an industry Open La Plata County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 56,408 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

In FY2026, an estimated $720.2K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Durango, Colorado: $37.10 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $720.2K; +14% vs FY2025
Per resident: $37.10; US $1,994
Sole-source: 16%; US 30%
Single offer: 55%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Forest Service$573.9K80%
Federal Highway Administration$69.7K9.7%
Department of Veterans Affairs$65.5K9.1%
Bureau of Reclamation$8,0871.1%
Defense Logistics Agency$1,1620.2%
Indian Health Service$1,0100.1%
Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education$6400.1%
Department of the Navy$4540.1%

Top recipients

PRECISION, LLC$129.4K18%
F & M CONSTRUCTION, INC.$69.7K9.7%
VALOR HEALTHCARE INC$62.1K8.6%
HOUSTON'S TOO LC$28.9K4.0%
INTENTS EMERGENCY RESPONSE LLC$22.7K3.1%

Spending by fiscal year

146.2KFY2017
143.5KFY2018
52.9KFY2019
98.9KFY2020
228.6KFY2021
221.2KFY2022
251.2KFY2023
272.1K

Top industries (NAICS)

Support activities for forestry · 1153$302.9K42%
Nonscheduled air transportation · 4812$129.4K18%
Highway, street, and bridge construction · 2373$69.7K9.7%
Outpatient care centers · 6214$62.1K8.6%
Special food services · 7223$34K4.7%
Other ambulatory health care services · 6219$32.5K

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Durango, Colorado, so they do not add up across cities.

Durango, Colorado's figures are part of those of La Plata County, CO ($35.3M in FY2026), never added to them: 2.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in La Plata 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.

Durango, 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.

La Plata County83100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Durango, CO85

Other cities and towns in La Plata 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/0822035

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends