Living in Colorado Springs, CO

El Paso County

Colorado Springs' identity starts with the military, and the scale here is genuinely large rather than a modest regional presence: the US Air Force Academy, Peterson Space Force Base, Schriever Space Force Base, and Fort Carson anchor a multi-installation concentration whose combined economic footprint runs into the billions. Space Base Delta 1 alone supports more than 18,400 personnel and is cited at a $6.275 billion economic impact; Fort Carson's annual impact is cited around $2.55 billion, supporting roughly 23,716 active-duty personnel and 57,220 family members as of a February 2025 fact sheet; Schriever supports 8,000 personnel and contributes a cited $1.3 billion. Region-wide coverage spanning five installations cites more than 100,000 defense-related jobs and a $7 billion aerospace economy -- a genuinely defining feature of the local economy, not a footnote. Layered onto that military base is a real, currently-rebuilding tech identity nicknamed "Silicon Mountain": the region once ran nine semiconductor fabs at its historical peak over roughly 30 years before that era ended, and while it hasn't returned to that peak, the 2022-cited $1.6 billion semiconductor economic output, more than 500 manufacturing companies, over 11,600 manufacturing workers, and Microchip Technology's cited $880 million expansion (alongside a newly approved local CHIPS Zone) represent a genuine, currently-active revival-in-progress. On cost, Colorado Springs is meaningfully, not marginally, more affordable than Denver: a roughly $472,000 median home sale price as of mid-2026 (a separate mid-year snapshot cited $450,850) runs well below Denver's roughly $616,000 in this same batch, and homes here sell more slowly too -- around 63 days on average with about 1 offer, a genuinely less-competitive market than Denver's. Colorado Springs' outdoor-recreation identity is also distinct from, and arguably more direct than, Denver's: Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods sit right at the city's edge, rather than requiring an I-70 drive to reach genuine mountain scenery. Politically, El Paso County is a real, current outlier within Colorado: the county runs roughly 18 points more Republican than the state as a whole and has historically produced more Republican votes than any other Colorado county, with June 2026 voter registration at 29% Republican versus 17% Democratic (and 54% unaffiliated) -- a genuinely more conservative character than Denver, whose registration carries the state's lowest Republican share, though the large unaffiliated share here means neither party holds an outright majority. On jobs, the metro's 4.1% unemployment rate in June 2026 was unchanged year-over-year and ranked 50th-lowest among 108 large US metros that month -- a real but middling labor market, neither a standout nor a concern, sitting alongside rather than eclipsing the defense-and-tech economic base described above.

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Housing

Median sale price (Colorado Springs city)$472,000

Redfin cited a $472,000 median sale price for Colorado Springs "last month" (up 1.9% year-over-year), with homes receiving about 1 offer on average and selling in around 63 days -- a genuinely slower, less-competitive market than Denver's in this same batch. A separate KRDO/Stacker mid-year 2026 review cited $450,850 for the same general period; both figures are disclosed here rather than silently picking one, with $472,000 used as the primary figure since it is the more directly Redfin-sourced number. Either figure runs meaningfully below Denver's roughly $616,000 in this same batch, which is the basis for the AFFORDABLE_HOUSING tag here.

Median sale price (El Paso County)Not yet verified

Taxes

Local effective property tax rateNot yet verified

Not independently sourced at the El Paso County level this session. Colorado's top state income tax rate is 4.40%. See the Colorado hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Colorado Springs-specific.

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The tradeoffs

Pros

A genuinely large, multi-installation military concentration (Air Force Academy, Peterson SFB, Schriever SFB, Fort Carson, plus Space Base Delta 1) with a combined economic impact in the billions of dollars, supporting a real military-family and military-retiree community; meaningfully more affordable housing than Denver (~$472K vs. Denver's ~$616K in this same batch); a direct, at-the-city's-edge Pikes Peak/Garden of the Gods outdoor-recreation identity; a real, currently-reviving "Silicon Mountain" semiconductor and advanced-manufacturing sector (500+ companies, 11,600+ workers, an $880M Microchip Technology expansion); a distinctly more conservative political character than Denver for buyers who prioritize that fit.

Cons

A genuinely regional-scale airport rather than a national hub -- Colorado Springs Airport does not approach Denver International's passenger volume or route network in this same batch; broadly car-dependent with no light rail or comparable rapid transit; a middling, not standout, June 2026 unemployment rate (4.1%, ranked 50th of 108 large metros) even amid the defense/tech economic base; the semiconductor sector remains a revival-in-progress relative to the region's historical nine-fab peak, not yet a full restoration; effective property tax rate could not be resolved to one authoritative figure this session (sources ranged roughly 0.38%-0.43% for El Paso County, with individual ZIP codes as high as 0.95%).

Who this fits

Best for: Military families and retirees drawn to a genuinely large, multi-installation concentration and its supporting community infrastructure; buyers prioritizing meaningfully more affordable housing than Denver alongside direct, at-the-city's-edge access to Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods; buyers who specifically want El Paso County's more conservative political character as a fit rather than a drawback.

Maybe not for you if: Buyers who specifically want Denver's national-hub airport access, its larger and more diversified tech/aerospace employment base, or its more Democratic-leaning political character should weigh Colorado Springs' genuinely regional-scale airport, car-dependent layout, and real ~18-point-more-Republican county lean before relocating on the assumption Colorado Springs is simply "a smaller, cheaper Denver."

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Last reviewed: 2026-08-22. Independent research; see individual metric entries above for source attribution. This is not financial, tax, or legal advice -- confirm current figures with a local professional before making a decision.