Colorado vs New York City taxes

Where the difference comes from

On $75,000 a single filer keeps $3,150 more in Colorado. Three lines make up the difference, and the largest is one Colorado does not have at all.

The city tax. New York City charges its residents 3.078% to 3.876% on the same taxable income the state uses, and reaches its top rate at $50,000 of taxable income. After the school tax credit it costs $2,263 on $75,000.

State income tax. New York State charges $3,453 on $75,000 and Colorado $2,592. Colorado’s flat 4.4% applies after the federal standard deduction of $16,100. New York’s deduction is $8,000, and its rate reaches 5.4% at a taxable income of just $13,900.

Payroll deductions nearly cancel. Colorado’s FAMLI premium is $330 on $75,000; New York’s paid family leave and disability insurance come to $355.

As income rises

Colorado keeps more at every salary in the tables above, single or joint, and the gap grows with income: $6,700 on $150,000 and $11,949 on $250,000, of which the city tax is $4,999 and $8,647. The school tax credit that softens the city tax ends at high incomes: the fixed part above $250,000 of income, the rate reduction above $500,000.

A couple filing jointly on $150,000 keeps $6,050 more in Colorado, of which $4,549 is the New York City tax they would otherwise pay.

Moving out of the five boroughs

The city tax follows where you live, not where you work. Move out during the year and the city taxes only the part of the year you lived there. Someone who moves to Denver and keeps a job in Manhattan stops owing city tax from the move.

New York State is stickier for remote workers. Its convenience of the employer rule can treat days worked at home for a New York employer as New York days, even when home is in another state. If you plan to keep a New York job after moving, confirm how New York will treat those days before assuming the Colorado column applies to you.

What the take-home figure does not count

Colorado’s rate can dip below 4.4% in a year when surplus revenue is refunded under the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights; these figures use the statutory rate. The small flat occupational privilege taxes in Denver, Aurora and a few other cities are left out. New York City’s withholding tables tend to take a little more than the tax owed, which comes back as a refund, so a city payslip can look worse than the column here. Rent and housing costs differ widely between the two, and none of that is in these figures.

Questions people ask

Do you take home more in Colorado or New York City on $75,000?

Colorado, by $3,150 a year, or $262 a month, for a single filer in 2026. That counts federal tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax and every state payroll deduction, plus local income tax.

Is the difference the same at every salary?

No, but the same side stays ahead. The gap is $1,079 a year at $30,000 and $11,949 at $250,000, for a single filer.

Does the New York City column include both state and city tax?

Yes. It has New York State income tax, the state's Paid Family Leave and disability insurance, and the city's resident income tax of 3.078% to 3.876%, less the refundable school tax credit. City and state tax go on the same return, Form IT-201.

If I move from New York City to Colorado mid-year, what happens to the city tax?

It stops. The city tax is a resident tax, so the city taxes only the part of the year you lived in the five boroughs. If you keep working remotely for a New York employer, New York State's convenience of the employer rule can still treat days worked from home as New York days, which is worth confirming before you move.

Does Denver have a city income tax like New York's?

No. No Colorado city levies an income tax on wages. Denver, Aurora and some other cities charge a flat occupational privilege tax on people who work there, a few dollars a month, which is not included here.

What this comparison covers

Income tax and payroll deductions on wages: federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, state income tax, every state payroll deduction, and local income tax where there is one. It does not compare sales tax, property tax, housing or the cost of living, which can outweigh the difference in take-home pay. Figures assume the standard deduction, no dependents and no pre-tax retirement contributions. See how we calculate.