Where Colorado ranks for businesses
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Colorado landed just outside CNBC's Top 10 States for businesses, held back by its rising cost of living and the cost of doing business.
Why it matters: The ranking is watched closely by Colorado's business community and political leaders as a benchmark for its competitiveness among other states.
State of play: Colorado ranked 11th in 2025, an improvement from 16th a year prior, CNBC reported.
- In most categories, the state progressed from 2024 or remained stable.
- The largest improvement came in quality of life and business friendliness, but the state slipped in its grades for the economy and education.
The other side: The state continued to rank toward the bottom (47th) for cost of living, largely based on the lack of affordable housing, and cost of doing business (38th), which includes taxes, wages and other regulatory expenses.
What they're saying: "If we can get our regulatory climate under control, we're hopeful that Colorado can once again be named a top 10 state for business," said Loren Furman, president and CEO of the Colorado Chamber, the state's leading business group.
The intrigue: The ranking is not a good look for Gov. Jared Polis, who has pledged to make Colorado the best state to do business. He made reducing regulations a priority in his legislative agenda earlier this year, but blames lawmakers for not doing more.
- "Being 11th in the country is good, but not good enough," Polis said in a statement to Axios Denver.
- "The best ways we can do better is by reducing housing costs and speeding up permitting to get more homes built quicker and to reduce unnecessary regulations and paperwork."