How much does a Data Scientist make in Colorado?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $106,500 for Data Scientists in Colorado as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $86,560 and the 75th-percentile is $132,890.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Data Scientist salary in Colorado?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 101.9 for Colorado), the real-wage equivalent is $104,559 — what the $106,500 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $84,983 to $130,469.

How many Data Scientists does Colorado employ?

BLS OES counts 6,750 Data Scientists employed in Colorado in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Where does Colorado rank for Data Scientist pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Colorado ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

How wide is the wage spread in Colorado?

P10 to P90 spans $67,330 to $172,010. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Colorado?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Colorado.

Does a PhD increase data scientist salary in Colorado?

BLS does not segment by degree. Industry surveys (Burtch Works, Glassdoor) show a PhD premium of roughly 10-25% versus a master's-only data scientist in Colorado, concentrated in research-heavy industries (pharma, quant finance, AI labs) and largely absent in product analytics roles.

Data Scientist Pay in Colorado: $106K Median + Purchasing Power (2026)

TL;DR

BLS reports Colorado Data Scientist median pay at $106,500. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $104,559.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
Quartile range $86,560 (bottom 25%) to $132,890 (top 25%); the P10-P90 envelope is $67,330 to $172,010.
Data Scientist ranking: #21 on the BLS table, #34 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Colorado

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$67,330	$66,103
P25 (lower quartile)	$86,560	$84,983
P50 (median)	$106,500	$104,559
P75 (upper quartile)	$132,890	$130,469
P90 (top tier)	$172,010	$168,876
Mean	$118,250	$116,095
Employment	6,750 Data Scientists in Colorado

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Colorado index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	101.9
Goods	99.2
Services	86.8
Rents	130.5

Colorado's overall RPP (101.9) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Colorado (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Data Scientist)	$106,500	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$14,677	13.8% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$3,993	4.4% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$8,147	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$79,683	74.8% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$78,231	÷ (101.9 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Colorado state-tax burden means for Data Scientist take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.7% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $79,683 (74.8% of gross). After the 101.9 RPP, real take-home is $78,231.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $112,590 for Data Scientists with mean pay of $124,590 and total employment of 233,440. Colorado sits at #21 on nominal pay and #34 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Colorado falls 13 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Data Scientist make in Colorado?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $106,500 for Data Scientists in Colorado as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $86,560 and the 75th-percentile is $132,890.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Data Scientist salary in Colorado?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 101.9 for Colorado), the real-wage equivalent is $104,559 — what the $106,500 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $84,983 to $130,469.
How many Data Scientists does Colorado employ?: BLS OES counts 6,750 Data Scientists employed in Colorado in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Where does Colorado rank for Data Scientist pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Colorado ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
How wide is the wage spread in Colorado?: P10 to P90 spans $67,330 to $172,010. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Colorado?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Colorado.
Does a PhD increase data scientist salary in Colorado?: BLS does not segment by degree. Industry surveys (Burtch Works, Glassdoor) show a PhD premium of roughly 10-25% versus a master's-only data scientist in Colorado, concentrated in research-heavy industries (pharma, quant finance, AI labs) and largely absent in product analytics roles.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 15-2051, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Colorado Data Scientist pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.