More than three out of four Coloradans worry they can’t afford to live here anymore
Jul 21, 2026, 2:21 PM
A lot of people around the country are wondering when gas and groceries got so expensive, but people in Colorado just want to know when our whole state got so expensive!
76% of Colorado residents are worried they won’t be able to afford to keep living in this state, and a majority of those same people would still recommend it as a place to live. We love it here. We just can’t pay for it.
The Colorado Health Foundation’s 2026 Pulse Poll — the seventh annual edition, which surveyed 2,240 adults this spring — found that three out of every four Coloradans are “very or somewhat worried” about being able to afford living in Colorado in the future. That’s up from 70% last year, which was already alarmingly high. And 85% said the rising cost of living is an “extremely or very serious problem,” making it the fastest-growing concern in the poll, jumping 12 percentage points from 2025.
The numbers behind the worry are the kind that make you set down your $8 latte. Nearly one in five Coloradans — 17% — reported skipping meals in the past year because they couldn’t afford food. Nearly half — 48% — postponed medical or dental care. A third worry about losing their home because they can’t afford rent or mortgage payments. And nearly 60% said they’d struggle to pay for basic needs like housing, utilities or groceries if hit with an unexpected $500 expense. This isn’t just hitting low-income families, either. The Colorado Health Foundation’s Katie Peshek said “financial pressure is a daily reality for many Coloradans, including those with higher incomes.”
Nearly three-quarters of residents have cut back on recreation and entertainment — which, in a state where hiking, skiing and brewery-hopping are practically cultural obligations, hits different. More than a third have delayed mental health care. And 37% say they’re worse off financially than they were a year ago. Only about a quarter of Coloradans report living comfortably with savings.
The poll arrives as Colorado prepares to elect a new governor and other statewide leaders this November, and the frustration is bipartisan: nearly three-quarters of respondents said they’re dissatisfied with how elected officials are responding to affordability concerns. The affordability crisis that started during the pandemic hasn’t faded — it’s hardened into a permanent feature of life. And yet, when asked if they’d recommend Colorado as a place to live, a majority still said yes.
