Colorado One of the Worst Places to Save Money in U.S.

As you have almost certainly been able to tell at this point, living in Colorado has become increasingly expensive.

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If you’re looking to buy a house, then good luck. In 2023, home prices in the Denver metro increased $52,047. It increased elsewhere as well. 

If you’re renting, you’ve also probably seen prices increase as well. 

Even gas prices have been on the rise as well. Interestingly, it could be because of our poor air quality. 

With all of this being said, is it any surprise saving in Colorado is an absolute nightmare?

Colorado is the 9th Worst State to Save

Forbes Advisor conducted a study to find which states are the most difficult to save in, and Colorado nearly tops their list.

They ranked states based on many different statistics, including debt-to-income ratio, cost of living index, effective income tax rate, and income spent on housing.

In the end, they gave each state a final score out of 100.

Colorado’s debt-to-income ratio sits towards the top, at 1.81, which it also has a high cost of living index at 105.

When it comes to the rate based statistics, Colorado has an effective income tax rate of 14.53%. On the other hand, Colorado spends a lot on housing, with 22.12% of our income going to it on average.

With all of this being said, Colorado’s final score comes in at 71.67. 

What States Are Harder to Save in Than Colorado?

The hardest place to save in the entire country is California, who ranks extremely highly with a final score at the maximum 100.

In second place is Hawaii, who actually has higher stats in debt-to-income ratio, cost of living index, and effective income tax rate. 

Here’s the full top 10 including each state’s final scores: 

1. California - 100.00
2. Hawaii - 87.53
3. Nevada - 85.44
4. Oregon - 83.66
5. Maryland - 83.36
6. Florida - 81.53
7. New York - 79.06
8. South Carolina - 76.38
9. Colorado - 71.67
10. Louisiana - 70.31

What States Are the Easiest to Save?

Here’s Forbes Advisor’s top 10 easiest states to save in along with their final scores:

1. North Dakota - 0
2. South Dakota - 5.54
3. Kansas - 5.96
4. Missouri - 12.31
5. Iowa - 13.36
6. Wisconsin - 15.66
7. Nebraska - 18.60
8. West Virginia - 25.35
9. Wyoming - 27.27
10. Ohio - 27.74