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Alamosa · FY2021 municipal finance benchmarks

Alamosa County · San Luis Valley · home rule municipality · Pop. 9,849 (2025 estimate); FY2021 per-resident figures use 9,898 · Census finance data FY2016, FY2021, FY2023

You’re viewing FY2021. See the latest view (FY2023). Latest Census Bureau finance data for Alamosa: FY2023. Retrieved Oct 2026. Newer years are added when the Census Bureau publishes them. Why the lag?

City website (opens in a new tab)

Compare

FY2021 in brief

Alamosa collected $2,527 per resident (including city-run utilities), in line with the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year, 7% below its peers. Tax revenue per resident sits in line with its peers, but 36% above the state median. Debt per resident runs 23% below peers.

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.6× the Colorado median.

Generated from the figures below. Every number links to its Census source.

Compared with

Nearest on population, household income and region

FY2021 headline figures

Revenue per resident (definition)

$2,527
7% below peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$2,726
CO median · 227 with a published figure
$2,476
Position
Higher than 52% of the 227 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+10.1%/yr
How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$1,446
39% below peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$2,384
CO median · 220 with a published figure
$2,208
Position
Higher than 27% of the 220 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+0.2%/yr

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$1,458
in line with peers
Peer median
$1,472
CO median · 201 with a published figure
$1,072
Position
Higher than 68% of the 201 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+8.6%/yr

Debt per resident (definition)

$1,586
23% below peers
Peer median
$2,066
CO median · 199 with a published figure
$1,411
Position
Higher than 56% of the 199 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+2.4%/yr
How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $2,527
Reported by the city to the Census Bureau

  1. 1Metric

    $2,527 Total revenue divided by population

    = Total revenue ÷ population

    Full definition: Revenue per resident

  2. 2Inputs

    Total revenue $25M ÷ population 9,898 (2021 estimate)

  3. 3Census line items

    • A61 Parks & recreation charges
    • A80 Sewer charges
    • A81 Solid waste charges
    • A91 Water utility charges
    • B89 Federal aid
    • C89 State aid
    • T01 Property tax
    • T09 General sales tax
    • U20 Interest earnings
    • U40 Rents

  4. 4Source file

What the numbers mean

  • Alamosa runs city-owned utilities, which add 8.5% of its revenue. Cities that don't run utilities will look lower on revenue and spending per resident for that reason alone. What counts as utility revenue
  • Alamosa relies on sales tax more than most Colorado municipalities. Tourism and regional retail can raise sales tax per resident because non-residents pay it.

Where the money comes from and where it goes

Per resident, FY2021. Bars show Alamosa; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

Regional hub: sales tax per resident is 1.6× the Colorado median.

Sales tax per resident is high, which usually means many non-residents shop, stay or work here. Per-resident figures divide citywide totals by residents only, so they overstate what residents themselves pay and use.

The biggest difference from peers is Utilities & environment: $434 per resident, 50% below the peer median. On the revenue side, utility & transit charges is 50% below peers.

Money in

Revenue

$2,527
per resident7% below peers
Money in: Alamosa revenue per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$1,39015% abovepeers $1,212
$60735% abovepeers $450
$2319% belowpeers $253
$21450% belowpeers $430
$6861% belowpeers $175
$1668% belowpeers $49
None reported · peers $131$0None reported
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 227 reporting

Money out

Spending

$1,446
per resident39% below peers
Money out: Alamosa spending per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$43450% belowpeers $876
$387in line withpeers $391
$22144% belowpeers $395
$19839% belowpeers $325
$17062% belowpeers $451
$3752% belowpeers $77
None reported · peers $41$0None reported
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 220 reporting

Alamosa and its peers

The five Colorado municipalities nearest on population, median household income and region. Budget size isn’t a matching factor, so peers aren’t chosen on the figures being compared. Per resident, FY2021. How peers are chosen

Open in Compare
Alamosa compared with its peer municipalities, FY2021, per resident
MunicipalityRevenueExpendituresTax revenueSales taxDebt
AlamosaUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 8.5% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.Regional hub: Sales tax per resident is 1.6× the Colorado median.$2,527$1,446$1,458$1,390$1,586
DeltaUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 39.0% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$2,408$2,370$1,031$987$2,066
CraigUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 15.2% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$2,577$2,384$1,386$925$665
CortezUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 15.1% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$2,726$2,120$1,543$1,212$454
Glenwood SpringsUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 22.0% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.Regional hub: Sales tax per resident is 2.8× the Colorado median.$6,400$6,064$2,856$2,413$5,718
RifleUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 15.5% of total revenue in FY2021. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.Regional hub: Sales tax per resident is 1.5× the Colorado median.$2,773$2,460$1,472$1,301$3,076
Peer median$2,726$2,384$1,472$1,212$2,066

Utilities marks a municipality whose revenue and spending include city-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit), which raises its per-resident totals.

Regional hub marks a municipality whose sales tax per resident is at least 1.5× the Colorado median: a shopping or visitor hub where people who live elsewhere pay much of the sales tax.

Trends

Every available fiscal year. Lines break where a year is missing or withheld; nothing is interpolated.

  • This city
  • Peer median
  • Withheld (shown on the axis, no value)
  • Colorado median (Census of Governments years only)
Revenue per resident
FY2016 $1,560 to FY2023 $2,698.$0$1.8K$3.5K’16’21’23Peer median FY2016: $2,617Peer median FY2021: $2,726Peer median FY2023: $3,545Colorado median FY2016: $1,746 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,476 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,560FY2021: $2,527FY2023: $2,698

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table
Revenue per resident by fiscal year
YearThis cityPeer medianColorado median
FY2016$1,560$2,617$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2021$2,527$2,726$2,476 (227 reporting)
FY2023$2,698$3,545$3,580 (97 reporting, sample year)
Expenditures per resident
FY2016 $1,435 to FY2023 $2,989.$0$1.5K$3K’16’21’23Peer median FY2016: $2,402Peer median FY2021: $2,384Peer median FY2023: $3,005Colorado median FY2016: $1,749 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,208 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,435FY2021: $1,446FY2023: $2,989. Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Census definition change: Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.

Peer group changed in FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table
Expenditures per resident by fiscal year
YearThis cityPeer medianColorado median
FY2016$1,435$2,402$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2021$1,446$2,384$2,208 (220 reporting)
FY2023$2,989$3,005$3,680 (91 reporting, sample year)
Tax revenue per resident
FY2016 $967 to FY2023 $1,013.$0$916.8$1.8K’16’21’23Peer median FY2016: $1,221Peer median FY2021: $1,472Peer median FY2023: $1,834Colorado median FY2016: $705 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,072 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $967FY2021: $1,458FY2023: $1,013

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table
Tax revenue per resident by fiscal year
YearThis cityPeer medianColorado median
FY2016$967$1,221$705 (193 reporting)
FY2021$1,458$1,472$1,072 (201 reporting)
FY2023$1,013$1,834$1,726 (90 reporting, sample year)
Debt per resident
FY2016 $1,410 to FY2023 $1,015.$0$1.1K$2.3K’16’21’23Peer median FY2016: $1,981Peer median FY2021: $2,066Peer median FY2023: $2,285Colorado median FY2016: $1,072 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,411 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,410FY2021: $1,586FY2023: $1,015

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2021, FY2023. Peers are matched each year, so the peer median can step when the group changes.

Show data table
Debt per resident by fiscal year
YearThis cityPeer medianColorado median
FY2016$1,410$1,981$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2021$1,586$2,066$1,411 (199 reporting)
FY2023$1,015$2,285$2,130 (91 reporting, sample year)

Questions about Alamosa’s finances

How much revenue does Alamosa collect per resident?
Alamosa collected $2,527 per resident in FY2021, in line with the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Alamosa's spending per resident compare with similar cities?
Alamosa spent $1,446 per resident in FY2021, 39% below the median of its peers: Delta, Craig, Cortez, Glenwood Springs and Rifle. See the figure
How much debt does Alamosa have per resident?
Alamosa carried $1,586 of debt per resident in FY2021, 23% below its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Alamosa compared with?
Alamosa is compared with Delta, Craig, Cortez, Glenwood Springs and Rifle: the Colorado municipalities nearest to it on population, median household income and region. Budget size isn't used, so peers aren't chosen on the figures being compared. See the peer table
Where do these numbers come from?
From the U.S. Census Bureau's Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances, as each government reported its own fiscal year, divided by Census population estimates. Figures that fail quality checks are withheld rather than shown. Sources and methodology

Community context

American Community Survey 5-year estimates and Census population estimates. Where the selected year isn’t available, the nearest earlier year is shown and labeled.

Population growth (5-yr)
+1.4%/yr
2021 estimate
Median household income
$43.2K
2021 estimate
Poverty rate
19.9%
2021 estimate
Median home value
$154.5K
2021 estimate
Housing vacancy rate
8.4%
2021 estimate

Explore further

Also in San Luis Valley

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

Dataset: Alamosa, CO municipal finance benchmarks

Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab). Please credit “Source: Orivian Municipal Index, orivian.ai/benchmarks”. See the data use terms.

Notes: dollars are nominal (not inflation-adjusted). Colorado medians cover the municipalities reporting that year. Peers: nearest on population, income and region. Definitions: orivian.ai/benchmarks/methodology.Retrieved October 12, 2026 from orivian.ai/benchmarks.

Every figure on this page is read from the published index; nothing is recalculated for display. Read the methodology

Utilities & environment is Alamosa’s largest difference from its peers (50% below the peer median in FY2021). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.

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