Payroll tools and source-backed guidance
Colorado Paycheck Calculator
Work out Colorado take-home pay from gross, pay frequency, filing status and pre-tax deductions. Federal and FICA are estimated for you; enter the CO...
Estimate pay before Colorado state and local withholding, then enter the amount from current official state guidance.
Colorado state withholding is not calculated automatically. Enter the amount for this pay period from an official worksheet or genuine payroll record to include it; leave it blank to see pay before state withholding. You can enter a known local withholding amount separately. The estimate covers federal withholding and FICA for one pay period, with Colorado income tax withholding, the FAMLI employee premium and any city occupational privilege tax included only if you enter them yourself from a pay statement or official instructions. This calculator is an estimate workspace, not a payroll filing service. Verify every assumption with current official instructions.
Two Colorado amounts you have to supply
Colorado income tax is built on federal taxable income as modified by state additions and subtractions, and the Department of Revenue requires every employer paying wages to withhold it. An employee may file Form DR 0004 to steer that withholding; without one, the employer works from the federal Form W-4 using the department's DR 1098 worksheet. Separately, the FAMLI program administered by the Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance is funded by a premium share taken from wages. This calculator produces neither. Put a pay period's Colorado income tax withholding in the state field and the FAMLI premium under other deductions; leave the state field empty and the total shown is pay before Colorado withholding.
The local field and Denver's occupational privilege tax
Colorado's local layer is not an income tax rate but an occupational privilege tax, charged by city on employees who earn more than a set monthly amount for work performed there. Denver publishes its own rules for it, including a form a worker with two Denver employers gives the second one so the employee portion is withheld only once. If your statement carries that line, enter it in the local field for the same period as the gross pay above, separately from the state figure and never rolled into it. Leave the field empty when you have no actual amount to copy.
Frequently asked questions
Does the estimate include the FAMLI deduction?
No. The employee premium share for Family and Medical Leave Insurance is not calculated here, and it does not belong in the Colorado state withholding field either, since it is a separate line administered by the Division of Family and Medical Leave Insurance rather than income tax withholding. Copy the amount from a pay statement covering the same period and enter it under other deductions, so it is subtracted once and only once.
I filed a DR 0004. Will that change the number here?
Not by itself. Nothing on this page reads a DR 0004, and the form only matters once your employer calculates your Colorado withholding from it; without one, the employer works from your federal Form W-4 and the Department of Revenue's worksheet. Either way, the Colorado line here shows exactly what you type. Once a new DR 0004 has taken effect, take a fresh figure from the next pay statement instead of reusing an older one.