Denver Metro Communities Ranked by Effective Property Tax Rate

By Jessica Car · Updated August 2026

Colorado has one of the lowest residential property tax burdens in the country. The residential assessment ratio (currently around 6.7%) means even a high mill levy translates to a relatively low effective rate. Across the Denver metro, effective rates typically range from about 0.4% to 1.2% of home value per year.

The variance matters more than the absolute level. The 3× spread between the lowest-tax and highest-tax communities translates to thousands of dollars per year on a typical Denver-metro home. School-district mill levies are the single biggest driver. Communities served by higher-funded districts (Douglas County, Boulder Valley, Cherry Creek) generally carry higher effective rates, which is the trade-off baked into the school-quality rankings on the best-schools page.

What this page doesn't capture: HOA fees (which can double the effective cost in master-planned communities), metro district fees (common in newer Douglas County and Northern Colorado developments, sometimes $1,500–$4,000/year on top of property tax), and the Special Districts that fund things like fire protection or local parks. Use this list as the property-tax-line-item ranking, then check the per-community taxes section for the all-in number.

Rank	Community	Region	Property tax rate
1	Watkins	East Metro	~0.49–0.81% effective (unincorporated Adams/Arapahoe County, varies by parcel)
2	Timnath	Northern Colorado	~0.50–0.55% + metro district overlay ($200–400/mo extra)
3	Wellington	Northern Colorado	~0.50–0.55%
4	Baker	Central Denver	~0.50% effective (Denver avg); ~79.2 mills
5	Cherry Creek	Central Denver	~0.50% effective (Denver avg); ~79.2 mills
6	Five Points	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills
7	LoDo	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills
8	Platt Park	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills. Estimated ~$4,590/yr on $918K median
9	RiNo	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills
10	The Highlands	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills
11	Washington Park	Central Denver	~0.50% effective; ~79.2 mills
12	Park Hill	Central Denver	~0.50% effective (Denver avg); ~79.2 mills
13	Wheat Ridge	West Metro & Foothills	~0.5% effective rate (Jeffco median ~$3,434/yr)
14	Pueblo	Pueblo	0.51%–0.69% effective; median annual bill ~$1,543–$1,811
15	Westminster	North Metro	~0.52% effective (Adams County side) / ~0.51% (Jeffco side)
16	Thornton	North Metro	~0.52% effective (Adams County)
17	Highlands Ranch	South Metro	~0.52%–0.63% effective (Douglas County)
18	Englewood	South Metro	~0.52% effective (Arapahoe County, below state median)
19	Longmont	Boulder Area	~0.54% (Boulder County · city mill levy 13.42)
20	Fort Collins	Northern Colorado	~0.55%
21	Windsor	Northern Colorado	~0.55–0.65% (Weld County)
22	Severance	Northern Colorado	~0.55% + metro districts
23	Berthoud	Northern Colorado	~0.55%
24	Johnstown	Northern Colorado	~0.55–0.65% (varies by county side)
25	Boulder	Boulder Area	~0.55–0.60% (varies by taxing district · mill levy ~65–95 total)
26	Erie	Boulder Area	Boulder County side: ~0.55–0.58%. Weld County side: ~0.77% (metro districts add more)
27	Superior	Boulder Area	~0.55% (Boulder County)
28	Broomfield	North Metro	~0.55% effective (Broomfield County)
29	Castle Rock	South Metro	~0.55% effective (Douglas County; mill levy ~66.6 before special districts)
30	Loveland	Northern Colorado	~0.58%
31	Greenwood Village	South Metro	~0.58% effective (Arapahoe County); GV mill levy 2.932, among lowest in metro Denver
32	Brighton	North Metro	~0.60% effective (Adams County)
33	Commerce City	North Metro	~0.60% effective (Adams County)
34	Federal Heights	North Metro	~0.60% effective (Adams County)
35	Northglenn	North Metro	~0.60% effective (Adams County)
36	Strasburg	East Metro	~0.60–0.81% effective (Adams/Arapahoe County varies by parcel)
37	Lone Tree	South Metro	~0.63% effective (Douglas County)
38	Parker	South Metro	~0.64% effective (Douglas County)
39	Greeley	Northern Colorado	~0.65% (Weld County, varies by district)
40	Castle Pines	South Metro	~0.67% effective (Douglas County)
41	Arvada	North Metro	~0.68% effective (Jeffco), city mill levy of 4.31 (among lowest in metro)
42	Littleton	South Metro	~0.71%–0.73% effective (varies by county, Arapahoe, Jefferson, or Douglas)
43	Centennial	South Metro	~0.71% effective (Arapahoe County)
44	Bennett	East Metro	~0.81% effective (Adams County average)
45	Conifer	West Metro & Foothills	~1.0–1.5% of appraised value (Jeffco)
46	Evergreen	West Metro & Foothills	~1.0–1.5% of appraised value (Jeffco). Median tax bill ~$5,010.
47	Lochbuie	North Metro	Mill levy 6.906
48	Golden	West Metro & Foothills	~90.8 mills total (city 18.34 mills + county + school + special districts)
49	Fountain	Colorado Springs	Median ~$2,820/yr (Livability)
50	Edgewater	West Metro & Foothills	Median ~$2,878/yr (Livability)
51	Aurora	East Metro	Median annual bill ~$2,902 (varies by county, Arapahoe, Adams, or Douglas)
52	Monument	Colorado Springs	Median ~$4,035/yr (Livability)
53	Louisville	Boulder Area	—
54	Lafayette	Boulder Area	—
55	Nederland	Boulder Area	—
56	Lakewood	West Metro & Foothills	Jefferson County, residential assessed at 6.25-7.05%
57	Morrison	West Metro & Foothills	—
58	Manitou Springs	Colorado Springs	—
59	Palmer Lake	Colorado Springs	El Paso County rates
60	Peyton	Colorado Springs	El Paso County rates, lower than incorporated areas
61	Woodland Park	Colorado Springs	Teller County rates, generally lower than El Paso
62	Beulah	Pueblo	Pueblo County rates, lower than metro Denver
63	Pueblo West	Pueblo	—

Other rankings

Each axis ranks the same 63 communities on a different dimension. A community that wins on one rarely wins on all; these views are complementary, not competing. See all rankings →

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