Town · Boulder County, Colorado

Lyons, Colorado

Lyons is a town in Boulder County, Colorado, part of the Boulder, CO metro area. It has 1,838 residents. Lyons, Colorado has a quality-of-life score of 90 out of 100 (very high), ranking #1,548 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Colorado it ranks #32 of 220 cities and towns. It ranks best on adult obesity (low), physical inactivity (low) and broadband subscriptions (high). It ranks worst on child care cost burden (high), high ozone days (high) and drought exposure (high).

90Very high

Quality-of-life score: #1,548 of 15,651 cities and towns
Colorado: #32 of 220 in CO
Population: 1,838 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,347.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 0847070

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.

Safety53#7,336/15,637
Economy71#4,503/15,631
Housing21#11,901/14,977
Health92#1,230/15,609
Healthcare98#384/15,650
Environment56#6,744/15,453
Education96#697/15,649
Infrastructure89#1,715/15,650
Community92#1,304/15,651
Leisure & amenities89#1,781/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Lyons, Colorado ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Boulder 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 · low16.5%
100/100Colorado 27.1%United States 38.2%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Physical inactivity · low10.2%
100/100Colorado 19.0%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Broadband subscriptions · high100.0%
99/100Colorado 93.5%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Mental health providers · high977 /100k
99/100Colorado 518 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBoulder County value
Gyms and fitness centers · high2.8 /10k
99/100Colorado 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBoulder County value
Public EV charging ports · high25.4 /10k
98/100Colorado 13.0 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyBoulder County value

Weaknesses

Child care cost burden · high43.2%
3/100Colorado 32.6%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBoulder County value
High ozone days · high11 days
5/100Colorado 10 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyBoulder County value
Drought exposure · high88%
7/100Colorado 70%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAABoulder County value
Home price to income ratio · high6.9×
8/100Colorado 5.7×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Job growth · low-2.7%
8/100Colorado -0.7%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataBoulder County value
Pharmacies · low1.0 /10k
13/100Colorado 0.9 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBoulder County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,228 (2015-2019) → 1,838 (2020-2024)
−18%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
57.2% (2015-2019) → 75.3% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Child poverty rateWorsening
0.7% (2015-2019) → 15.7% (2020-2024)
+15 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateWorsening
4.1% (2015-2019) → 11.9% (2020-2024)
+7.9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
5.6× (2015-2019) → 6.9× (2020-2024)
+23%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×
Average commute timeImproving
28.7 min (2015-2019) → 22.1 min (2020-2024)
−23%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

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, Lyons, Colorado improved on 1 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 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.

Improved1

Bachelor's++18 points57.2% → 75.3%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Lyons, Colorado between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	28.7 min2015-2019	22.1 min2020-2024	−6.6 min	Within the margin of error	94%
Bachelor's degree or higher	57.2%2015-2019	75.3%2020-2024	+18 points	Improved	99%
Broadband subscriptions	96.2%2015-2019	100.0%2020-2024	+3.8 points	Within the margin of error	25%
Effective property tax rate	0.59%2015-2019	0.61%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	14%
High school diploma or higher	96.5%2015-2019	99.8%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Home price to income ratio	5.6×2015-2019	6.9×2020-2024	+1.3×	Within the margin of error	13%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4532015-2019	0.4282020-2024	−0.025	Within the margin of error	71%
Median household income	$103,5332015-2019	$122,8372020-2024	+19%	Within the margin of error	30%
Rent as share of income	32.0%2015-2019	30.5%2020-2024	−1.5 points	Within the margin of error	66%
Rent-burdened households	53.1%2015-2019	52.9%2020-2024	−0.2 points	Within the margin of error	57%

“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 Lyons, Colorado five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Lyons, 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, Lyons, Colorado itself moved +8.3 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

1,838 residents (±385)

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

747 households (±156)

Lyons, Colorado
Colorado share

Under $25k7.0%†52
$25k–50k18%†135
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

747 households (±156)

Lyons, Colorado
Colorado share

Own86%639
Rent14%†108

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Rent (−11.6 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

751 workers (±173)

Lyons, Colorado
Colorado share

Drive alone41%†310
Carpool7.6%†57
Public transit

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 Boulder, 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 Boulder County, the county holding most of Lyons's residents.

Boulder County has 12,990 employer establishments, 396 for every 10,000 residents (1.60× the US rate of 248; 1.28× Colorado's), with 159,619 paid employees at an average annual pay of $82,814. The Census Bureau also counts 42,056 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 12,990; 42,056 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 396; US 248 · Colorado 309
Paid employees: 159,619
Average annual pay: $82,814; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	1,344	41	1.97×More than typical	9,639	$75,637	3,296
Lessors of real estate	862	26.3	2.13×More than typical	2,203	$65,354	5,296
Management, scientific and technical consulting	862	26.3	3.92×More than typical	3,892	$125,039	3,547
Restaurants and other eating places	763	23.3	1.27×More than typical	15,311	$27,908	103
Offices of other health practitioners	666	20.3	3.34×More than typical	1,974	$44,253	2,379
Computer systems design and related services	561	17.1	3.95×More than typical	6,130	$125,415	1,007
Specialty trade contractors	490	14.9	0.97×About typical	3,536	$65,378	1,700
Real estate agents and brokers	488	14.9	3.06×More than typical	645	$87,402	942
Architectural, engineering and related services	399	12.2	3.49×More than typical	4,786	$117,682	699
Full-service restaurants	359	10.9	1.43×More than typical	8,000	$32,324	40
Schools, colleges and instruction	335	10.2	2.92×More than typical	3,959	$47,961	2,160
Legal services	301	9.2	1.71×More than typical	1,279	$126,003	503

Rank places for an industry Open Boulder County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 327,945 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 $1,635 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Lyons, Colorado: $0.89 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1,635; +1.7% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0.89; US $1,994
Sole-source: 100%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

Bureau of Reclamation$1,635100%

Top recipients

CAROL MARRA CONSULTING, INC.$1,635100%

Spending by fiscal year

895.7FY2017
675FY2018
1.4KFY2019
432.6FY2020
424FY2021
-22.1FY2022
2.1KFY2023
1.6KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419$1,635100%

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 Lyons, Colorado, so they do not add up across cities.

Lyons, Colorado's figures are part of those of Boulder County, CO ($725.6M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Boulder 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.

Lyons, Colorado is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Boulder County88100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Boulder, CO92

Other cities and towns in Boulder 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/0847070

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends