ColumbineCO
A town of 25,478.
Is Columbine a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Columbine grades A overall, 20th among Colorado's 158 graded towns. Residents are healthier than 97% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The median household earns $131K and its schools outperform 78% of the state's. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $617K for a typical one and 5.8 times the Denver metro’s $106K median household income. Columbine’s midpoint rent is $2,448 a month, against $1,807 a month in Colorado’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Chatfield State Park, 135 acres with 1.3 miles of trail.
What makes Columbine stand out
Where Columbine beats most towns.
96% of working residents leave Columbine for work
Where Columbine’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
How Columbine grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Columbine is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Red Rocks Amphitheatre and 60 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Columbine. Close and well known come first.
Big draw9 mi TheatreRed Rocks Amphitheatre
Big draw11 mi Stadium & arenaEmpower Field at Mile High
12 mi Stadium & arenaBall Arena
in town LandmarkColumbine Memorial
12 mi Stadium & arenaCoors Field
12 mi Theme parkElitch Gardens Theme ParkPhoto credits
Red Rocks Amphitheatre: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Empower Field at Mile High: Thelastcanadian, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ball Arena: KM Newnham, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Columbine Memorial: Denverjeffrey, CC BY 3.0 · Coors Field: Matt Kozlowski, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Elitch Gardens Theme Park: USGS, Public domain
Moving to Columbine: who provides what
Columbine is unincorporated, so Arapahoe County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Columbine.
Columbine has less no health insurance than most of Colorado and has a shorter frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Colorado; it also has many renters stretched by housing costs.
Columbine’s grade for health is an A+
Its widest gap with Colorado is no health insurance: 6.8% of those 18–64 have no health insurance, against 11.1% statewide.
Columbine: 30% of adults have high blood pressure. On the CDC’s 26 measures, Columbine is ahead of Colorado on 11 and behind on 4. Among adults here, 13% get no exercise outside work and 14% report frequent mental distress.
| Columbine | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 26% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 25% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 30% | 36% |
| What stands out | Columbine | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.8% | 11.1% |
| Fewer adults who get no exercise | 12.9% | 17.7% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.3% | 7.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Columbine’s grade for schools is an A−
Its public schools are run by the Jefferson County School District No. R-1. Three of its 10 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. Public school enrollment in Columbine: 1,776 students across 5 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ken Caryl Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 725 | B |
| Columbine High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,710 | A |
| Wilder Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 592 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
With only 0.3 jobs per working resident, most people in Columbine work out of town
For residents in Columbine, the share who live below the poverty line is 4.3%. Only 4% of working residents stay in Columbine for work; the rest commute out. Jobs in Columbine grew by 555 from 2013 to 2023, reaching 4,160. Half of commuters travel less than 11 miles.
| Columbine | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $131,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 22% | 18% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 4.3% | 8.5% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.8% | 7.8% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Columbine keeps 17.2% of its land conserved
Across 13 parks and preserves: 7.6 miles of trail. For Columbine, the density of trails is 1.1 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Robert F. Clement Park | 1.7 mi | 131 |
| 2. Chatfield State Park | 1.3 mi | 135 |
| 3. Wayside Meadows Park | 1 mi | 39 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Four seasons and hot summers in Columbine
The Marston Fltr Plt weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 160 days: shorter than most of the country, but longer than 89% of Colorado places with climate records.
Columbine’s peak summer temperature comes in at 89°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Fewer adults under 35 in Columbine than across Colorado
Adults 18 to 34 are 17% of residents (25% statewide); people 65 and older are 20% of residents (16% statewide). In Columbine, 53% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more. For Columbine, the median age is 40.6 years.
| Columbine | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 53% | 44% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 20% | 15% | 18% |
| Median age | 40.6 years | 38.3 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 23% | 22% | 22% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.4 points. Across Colorado, 49.3% of residents are women. Median age: women 40.0, men 41.5.
| Columbine | CO | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 13% | 10.9% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.1% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.6% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.2% | 15.7% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 16.4% | 14.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.1% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.6% | 11.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.9% | 9.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.2% | 5.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2.7% | 7.1% | 10.4% |
| High school | 17.2% | 19.7% | 26% |
| Some college | 19% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.9% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 36.2% | 28.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 17% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Moderate risk in Columbine, with inland flooding at the top
Expected damage from storms and floods is higher here than in 53% of U.S. communities. FEMA puts nearly two fifths of Columbine’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 34% to hail. Paid flood insurance claims here since 1982: 6.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Homes in Columbine sell for about $650K
68.8% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 52.9% across Colorado.
Among households in Columbine, 89% own their home. In Columbine, the typical sale closed at 100.7% of the list price. Homes sold in Columbine spent a median 18 days on the market.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Everything we know about Columbine
Colleges nearby
17 within 15 miles of the center of Columbine
About 4 of every 100 Columbine residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Colorado.
About Columbine
Census-designated place in Colorado, USA
Columbine ( ko-luhm-bine) is a census-designated place (CDP) in and governed by Jefferson and Arapahoe counties in Colorado, United States. The CDP is a part of the Denver metropolitan area. Located primarily in Jefferson County, Columbine lies immediately south of Denver. The population of the Columbine CDP was 25,229 at the 2020 census. The community lies in ZIP code 80123.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 6.8 sq mi
- Elevation
- 5,538 ft
Columbine’s neighbors
3 towns share a border with Columbine.
| Town | CO rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbine | #20 | A | C− | — | A− | A+ |
| Littleton | #54 | B+ | C− | C− | A+ | A+ |
| Ken Caryl | #11 | A | C− | — | A− | A+ |
| Columbine Valley | — | — | C− | — | A+ | A+ |
Columbine Valley has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Columbine, Ken Caryl and Columbine Valley report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Columbine with a neighbor →
Questions about Columbine
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Columbine, CO a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Columbine grades A overall, better than 88% of U.S. towns and #20 of 158 in Colorado. It grades A+ for health and A− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Is Columbine, CO expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $617,000, 17% above the Colorado typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.