Budget Analysts in Colorado
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$73,576
after federal, FICA and Colorado tax
Tax takes
$23,524
24.2% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$72,573
Colorado costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Colorado — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$97,100
Kept after tax
$73,576
Worth in national money
$72,573
State rank
6
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Colorado is one of the better-paying states for budget analysts. The middle earner takes $97,100, which ranks 6 of 51 states with published figures. That is about 5.96% above the national middle.
- Within Colorado this is well-paid work. Of 491 occupations with published figures in the state, budget analysts ranks 102 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- No great distortion either way. Colorado costs about what the country costs, so from $97,100, take-home of $73,576 is worth roughly $72,573 in national money. The average comes to $99,890, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Colorado ranks 6 of 51 states publishing a median for budget analysts, at $97,100 — about 5.96% above the national median. A state's position on nominal pay is the figure wage tables report and the least informative of the three on this page, because it survives neither the tax adjustment nor the price adjustment intact for most occupations.
- Ranked against every occupation Colorado publishes a median for, budget analysts sits 102 of 491 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Price parity in Colorado is near the national base, so for budget analysts, whose median is $97,100, the adjusted figure of $72,573 differs little from $73,576 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $99,890 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Budget Analysts
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $70,660 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $97,100 |
| Top tenth earn over | $130,180 |
| This salary | $97,100 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Colorado | $73,576 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $77,140 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$6,810 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $92,034 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$9,406 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 101 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of budget analysts in Colorado earn under $97,100 and half over. The published range runs $70,660 at the tenth percentile to $130,180 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Colorado's $73,576, worked from $97,100. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 102 of 491.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $72,573 uses one figure for the whole of Colorado. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 491 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 102.
- Figures are distribution medians for budget analysts in Colorado, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $70,660 to $130,180; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- The Colorado take-home of $73,576, on $97,100 for work ranking 102 of 491 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 102 of 491 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $72,573, worked from $97,100, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Colorado address, on work sitting at 102 of 491 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $70,660 and the top tenth $130,180, so most people doing this work in Colorado sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
The number and the value are different things. Colorado costs more than the national average, so this take-home stretches like $72,573 rather than its face figure.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Colorado's own levy, $73,576 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($70,660 to $130,180) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Colorado rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Colorado's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $72,573 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $73,576 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Colorado income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.