2026 Colorado local sales and use tax rate changes

New year. New you. New tax rates. The Colorado Department of Revenue has published its official list of local sales and use tax changes effective January 1, 2026. The update includes rate increases, new taxing jurisdictions, changes in tax administration, and service fee updates across cities, counties, and special districts.

Key points

• Colorado has released official local sales and use tax changes effective January 1, 2026.
• Changes include rate increases, newly imposed local taxes, and administrative updates.
• Because Colorado uses destination-based sourcing, these changes apply to anyone selling into affected locations.

What’s changing

The January 1, 2026 update includes changes across state-administered, self-collected, and special district jurisdictions. Specific rates vary by location.

City-administered jurisdictions

The following cities are imposing new taxes, increasing rates, or changing administration:

• Aspen: sales tax increases to 2.70%
• Fort Morgan: sales and use tax increase to 5.00%
• Gunnison: returns to state-collected sales tax at 4.00%
• Merino: new jurisdiction imposing a 2.00% sales tax
• Pagosa Springs: new jurisdiction imposing a 1.00% sales tax
• Wellington: service fee update with a 3.00% sales tax
• Yuma: sales and use tax increase to 3.75%

County-administered jurisdictions

Several counties are increasing rates or modifying exemptions:

• Arapahoe County: 0.25% with service fee changes
• Boulder County: sales and use tax increase to 1.335%
• La Plata County: sales tax increase to 3.00%
• Larimer County: sales and use tax increase to 1.05%
• Pueblo County: exemption updates at a 1.00% rate

Special districts

New and existing special districts are imposing or increasing sales taxes, including fire protection districts and lodging districts across the state. Notable changes include:

• New fire protection districts in Aspen, Basalt, Carbondale, Cimarron Hills, Clifton, Evans, Lake City, La Veta, and South Adams County
• New lodging districts in Kiowa, Mountain View, Ouray County, and Routt County
• Lodging tax rate increases in Eagle County, Gilpin County, Hinsdale County, and Park County

Special district rates vary by jurisdiction and generally range from 0.25% to 8.00%.

Self-collected jurisdictions

The following self-collected cities are changing rates or service fees:

• Cortez: sales and use tax decrease to 3.85%
• Monument: service fee update at 3.50%
• Timnath: sales and use tax increase to 4.25%
• Westminster: sales and use tax increase to 4.25%

Why this matters for sellers

Because Colorado applies destination-based sourcing, local rate changes directly affect the tax charged based on the customer’s address. Sellers may need to apply different combined rates even when their own business operations have not changed.

Failure to apply the correct local rate beginning January 1, 2026 can result in under- or over-collection.

Who this affects

• Retailers with physical locations in Colorado
• Remote sellers shipping taxable goods or services into Colorado
• Ecommerce businesses using address-level tax calculation
• Accounting teams managing Colorado sales and use tax compliance

If you use TaxCloud: TaxCloud automatically updates state and local sales tax rate changes across jurisdictions. Sellers with Colorado tax obligations can rely on TaxCloud to keep applicable rates current without manual maintenance.

Next steps for sellers

• Calculation: Confirm systems apply the correct local sales and use tax rates for transactions on and after January 1, 2026.
• Review: Check whether customer addresses fall within jurisdictions with new or adjusted taxes.
• Reporting: Ensure January 2026 returns reflect updated local rates and administration changes.