Most of Boulder is in Boulder County, where a full-time job needs to pay at least $53.46 an hour before taxes to take home four times the typical studio rent.
Across the 10 ZIP codes in Boulder with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,520 to $1,790 a month. At the middle rent, $1,590, a full-time job would need to pay $53.07 an hour before taxes.
What the standard would be at each ZIP code's own studio rent. The calculator and the official standard use the county figure.
| ZIP | County | Studio rent | Pay needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80301 | Boulder County | $1,620/mo | $54.22/hr |
| 80302 | Boulder County | $1,600/mo | $53.46/hr |
| 80303 | Boulder County | $1,580/mo | $52.69/hr |
| 80304 | Boulder County | $1,670/mo | $56.12/hr |
| 80305 | Boulder County | $1,790/mo | $60.70/hr |
| 80306 | Boulder County | $1,520/mo | $50.40/hr |
| 80307 | Boulder County | $1,520/mo | $50.40/hr |
| 80308 | Boulder County | $1,520/mo | $50.40/hr |
| 80309 | Boulder County | $1,520/mo | $50.40/hr |
| 80310 | Boulder County | $1,600/mo | $53.46/hr |
Under the Four Times Rent standard, a full-time job in Boulder needs to pay at least $53.46 an hour before taxes, about $111,188 a year. That is the figure for Boulder County, where the typical studio rent is $1,600 a month.
Yes. Across the 10 ZIP codes in Boulder with HUD rent figures, studio rents run from $1,520 to $1,790 a month. At the middle rent of $1,590, the pay needed would be $53.07 an hour.
The minimum wage in Boulder County is $15.16 an hour. The Four Times Rent standard there is 3.5 times that.
The Four Times Rent standard: a month of full-time work (160 hours) should take home at least four times the typical rent on a studio apartment in the county where the work is done. Rents: HUD FY2027 Fair Market Rents. Taxes: 2026 federal and state income taxes plus Social Security and Medicare, for a single filer. Why four times rent? · Method and data downloads