How does a $120,000 salary stack up against rent in Denver, CO?
Quick answer
Likely manageable on a 30% planning rule. HUD Fair Market Rent is at or under 30% of estimated monthly take-home. Because state tax is not modeled, treat the rent-to-net ratio as optimistic.
The numbers
- Gross offer: $120,000 / year
- Filing status: single (v0 default)
- State: CO (state income tax NOT modeled yet — figures are federal+FICA only)
- Federal+FICA take-home ceiling: $93,250 / year ($7,770.83 / month)
- HUD FMR area: Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO MSA
- HUD 2-bedroom rent benchmark: $2,089 / month
- Rent / net: 26.9%
- Approx. gross for 30% rent/net planning rule: $106,226
What this means in Denver
For a $120,000 offer in CO, our model estimates about $93,250 left after federal income tax and employee FICA only (state tax excluded). Against HUD’s 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO MSA, housing would claim roughly 26.9% of that monthly figure.
A common planning shorthand is keeping rent near 30% of take-home. That is not a rule you must follow, and your real rent, commute, household size, and deductions can move the answer a lot.
Run your own numbers
Sources
- IRS / SSA parameters for tax year 2026 (see Methodology)
- HUD Fair Market Rent county-level data (FY index)