Denver Rent Prices in 2026: What the Data Actually Shows

Denver was one of the great migration stories of the last decade, and rent followed the crowd up the mountain. That climb has mostly stopped. Denver's median rent is $1,846 as of June 2026, up less than 1% over the year, which for a metro this popular reads as a plateau. A household on the city's $94,718 median income spends about 23% of gross pay on that rent. All figures here are from RentDataNow.

Aurora: the metro's value anchor

Aurora runs $1,745, below the city proper, and it is where a lot of priced-out Denver renters end up. The trade is real square footage and easier parking for a longer commute, but the rent-to-income picture stays reasonable. Lakewood at $1,786 and Thornton at $1,875 round out the mid-tier, and Thornton is one of several northern suburbs where rent actually slipped over the past year.

The premium tier: Arvada, Centennial, Boulder

Arvada crosses into the $2,000s at $2,060, and Centennial reaches $2,150 against a high $131,928 median income that keeps the ratio near 20%. The outlier is Boulder at $2,449, the most expensive rent in the metro by a wide margin. Boulder's reported median income of $87,493 is dragged down by University of Colorado students, so the on-paper 34% rent burden overstates the squeeze on full-time professional households while understating it for everyone living on a student budget.

Where rent is slipping

Several Front Range suburbs posted year-over-year declines, including Thornton, Westminster at $1,790, and Broomfield at $1,943. These are not dramatic drops, but in a metro that spent ten years going one direction, a falling number changes the negotiation. A renewal offer in a suburb where the market softened is a renewal you can push back on.

Summary for Denver renters

The frantic phase is over. Denver rent is high relative to where it sat in 2015, but it has stopped sprinting, and a handful of suburbs are giving a little back. If you want the lowest number, look north and east toward Aurora and Thornton. If budget is no object and you want the foothills, Boulder will take it. Compare any two Front Range cities with the RentDataNow compare tool, or see where Denver lands nationally on the most-expensive rankings.