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Brighton · FY2023 municipal finance benchmarks

Weld, Adams counties · Northern Front Range · home rule municipality · Pop. 45,395 (2025 estimate); FY2023 per-resident figures use 42,784 · Census finance data FY2016–FY2023

Latest Census Bureau finance data for Brighton: 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

FY2023 in brief

Brighton collected $2,803 per resident (including city-run utilities), 22% below the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year, 31% above its peers. Tax revenue per resident sits 7% below its peers, and 21% below the state median. Debt per resident runs 65% above peers.

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

Compared with

Nearest on population, household income and region

FY2023 headline figures

Revenue per resident (definition)

$2,803
31% above peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$2,142
CO median · 97 with a published figure
$3,580
Position
Higher than 34% of the 97 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+3.1%/yr
How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$2,383
9% above peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$2,189
CO median · 91 with a published figure
$3,680
Position
Higher than 23% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+0.6%/yr

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$1,371
7% below peers
Peer median
$1,476
CO median · 90 with a published figure
$1,726
Position
Higher than 36% of the 90 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+3.2%/yr

Debt per resident (definition)

$1,114
65% above peers
Peer median
$674
CO median · 91 with a published figure
$2,130
Position
Higher than 24% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+7.6%/yr
How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $2,803
Includes Census estimates for 92% of revenue

  1. 1Metric

    $2,803 Total revenue divided by population

    = Total revenue ÷ population

    Full definition: Revenue per resident

  2. 2Inputs

    Total revenue $119.9M ÷ population 42,784 (2023 estimate)

  3. 3Census line items

    • A03 Commercial activities (other) charges
    • A80 Sewer charges
    • A89 General government (other) charges
    • A91 Water utility charges
    • C89 State aid
    • D89 Local government aid
    • T01 Property tax
    • T09 General sales tax
    • T19 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T28 Licenses & permits
    • T29 Licenses & permits
    • T99 Other taxes
    • U01 Special assessments
    • U20 Interest earnings
    • U30 Fines & forfeits
    • U99 Miscellaneous

  4. 4Source file

What the numbers mean

  • Brighton runs city-owned utilities, which add 11.6% 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
  • Part of Brighton's FY2023 revenue is a Census Bureau estimate, not a reported figure. How estimates are handled

Where the money comes from and where it goes

Per resident, FY2023. Bars show Brighton; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

The biggest difference from peers is General government: $415 per resident, 44% below the peer median. On the revenue side, other revenue is 3.1× peers.

Money in

Revenue

$2,803
per resident31% above peers
Money in: Brighton revenue per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$1,0619% abovepeers $978
$5333.1×peers $172
$39916% abovepeers $344
$32569% abovepeers $193
$21811% abovepeers $197
$176in line withpeers $179
$9158% belowpeers $217
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 97 reporting

Money out

Spending

$2,383
per resident9% above peers
Money out: Brighton spending per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$93638% abovepeers $678
$41544% belowpeers $746
$401in line withpeers $421
$3557% abovepeers $332
$21539% abovepeers $154
$4269% abovepeers $25
$20No peer comparisonpeers $0
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 91 reporting

Brighton 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, FY2023. How peers are chosen

Open in Compare
Brighton compared with its peer municipalities, FY2023, per resident
MunicipalityRevenueExpendituresTax revenueSales taxDebt
BrightonUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 11.6% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$2,803$2,383$1,371$1,061$1,114
WindsorUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 9.0% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$2,142$2,613$965$708$674
NorthglennUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 11.2% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$1,826$1,468$1,047$851$266
Littleton$2,399$2,069$1,476$978$91
EnglewoodUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 10.6% of total revenue in FY2023. Revenue and spending per resident include them, so cities that run their own utilities read higher than cities that don't.$3,580$3,023$1,813$1,260$1,496
Wheat Ridge$2,104$2,189$1,495$1,138$1,888
Peer median$2,142$2,189$1,476$978$674

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

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 $1,890 to FY2023 $2,803.$0$1.6K$3.1K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $1,770Peer median FY2017: $2,278Peer median FY2018: $2,488Peer median FY2019: $2,118Peer median FY2020: $1,703Peer median FY2021: $2,426Peer median FY2022: $2,692Peer median FY2023: $2,142Colorado median FY2016: $1,746 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,476 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,890FY2017: $1,938FY2018: $2,403FY2019: $2,389FY2020: $3,101FY2021: $2,532FY2022: $2,621FY2023: $2,803

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020. 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$1,890$1,770$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2017$1,938$2,278$2,694 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$2,403$2,488$2,529 (75 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$2,389$2,118$2,694 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$3,101$1,703$2,739 (76 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$2,532$2,426$2,476 (227 reporting)
FY2022$2,621$2,692$3,031 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$2,803$2,142$3,580 (97 reporting, sample year)
Expenditures per resident
FY2016 $1,748 to FY2023 $2,383.$0$1.7K$3.3K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $1,943Peer median FY2017: $1,974Peer median FY2018: $2,028Peer median FY2019: $1,620Peer median FY2020: $2,090Peer median FY2021: $1,646Peer median FY2022: $2,187Peer median FY2023: $2,189Colorado median FY2016: $1,749 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,208 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,748FY2017: $1,825FY2018: $2,311FY2019: $2,116FY2020: $3,301FY2021: $2,260FY2022: $2,398. Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.FY2023: $2,383. 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 FY2017, FY2018, FY2020. 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$1,748$1,943$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2017$1,825$1,974$2,663 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$2,311$2,028$2,387 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$2,116$1,620$2,759 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$3,301$2,090$2,485 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$2,260$1,646$2,208 (220 reporting)
FY2022$2,398$2,187$3,025 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$2,383$2,189$3,680 (91 reporting, sample year)
Tax revenue per resident
FY2016 $1,061 to FY2023 $1,371.$0$737.8$1.5K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $905Peer median FY2017: $1,025Peer median FY2018: $1,134Peer median FY2019: $1,046Peer median FY2020: $1,103Peer median FY2021: $1,215Peer median FY2022: $1,338Peer median FY2023: $1,476Colorado median FY2016: $705 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,072 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,061FY2017: $1,098FY2018: $1,173FY2019: $1,245FY2020: $1,133FY2021: $1,329FY2022: $1,415FY2023: $1,371

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020. 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$1,061$905$705 (193 reporting)
FY2017$1,098$1,025$1,098 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$1,173$1,134$1,173 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$1,245$1,046$1,187 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$1,133$1,103$1,238 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$1,329$1,215$1,072 (201 reporting)
FY2022$1,415$1,338$1,631 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,371$1,476$1,726 (90 reporting, sample year)
Debt per resident
FY2016 $1,607 to FY2023 $1,114.$0$915.4$1.8K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $718Peer median FY2017: $992Peer median FY2018: $1,254Peer median FY2019: $1,831Peer median FY2020: $712Peer median FY2021: $1,156Peer median FY2022: $744Peer median FY2023: $674Colorado median FY2016: $1,072 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,411 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,607FY2017: $1,519FY2018: $771FY2019: $1,352FY2020: $904FY2021: $1,382FY2022: $1,258FY2023: $1,114

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020. 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$1,607$718$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2017$1,519$992$1,482 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$771$1,254$1,644 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$1,352$1,831$1,627 (69 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$904$712$1,798 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$1,382$1,156$1,411 (199 reporting)
FY2022$1,258$744$2,068 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,114$674$2,130 (91 reporting, sample year)

Questions about Brighton’s finances

How much revenue does Brighton collect per resident?
Brighton collected $2,803 per resident in FY2023, 22% below the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Brighton's spending per resident compare with similar cities?
Brighton spent $2,383 per resident in FY2023, 9% above the median of its peers: Windsor, Northglenn, Littleton, Englewood and Wheat Ridge. See the figure
How much debt does Brighton have per resident?
Brighton carried $1,114 of debt per resident in FY2023, 65% above its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Brighton compared with?
Brighton is compared with Windsor, Northglenn, Littleton, Englewood and Wheat Ridge: 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)
+1.7%/yr
2023 estimate
Median household income
$100.1K
2023 estimate
Poverty rate
8.8%
2023 estimate
Median home value
$475.1K
2023 estimate
Housing vacancy rate
3.3%
2023 estimate

Explore further

Also in Northern Front Range

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

Dataset: Brighton, 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

General government is Brighton’s largest difference from its peers (44% below the peer median in FY2023). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.

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