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Lakewood · FY2023 municipal finance benchmarks

Jefferson County · Denver Metro · home rule municipality · Pop. 156,927 (2025 estimate); FY2023 per-resident figures use 156,481 · Census finance data FY2016–FY2023

Latest Census Bureau finance data for Lakewood: 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

Lakewood collected $1,624 per resident (including city-run utilities), 55% below the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. Tax revenue per resident sits 35% below its peers. Debt per resident runs 98% below 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)

$1,624
50% below peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$3,258
CO median · 97 with a published figure
$3,580
Position
Higher than 5% of the 97 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+4.8%/yr
How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$1,537
49% below peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$3,033
CO median · 91 with a published figure
$3,680
Position
Higher than 7% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+4.9%/yr

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$1,031
35% below peers
Peer median
$1,578
CO median · 90 with a published figure
$1,726
Position
Higher than 19% of the 90 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+5.9%/yr

Debt per resident (definition)

$33
98% below peers
Peer median
$1,563
CO median · 91 with a published figure
$2,130
Position
Higher than 1% of the 91 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
−23.0%/yr
How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $1,624
Includes Census estimates for 100% of revenue

  1. 1Metric

    $1,624 Total revenue divided by population

    = Total revenue ÷ population

    Full definition: Revenue per resident

  2. 2Inputs

    Total revenue $254.2M ÷ population 156,481 (2023 estimate)

  3. 3Census line items

    • A61 Parks & recreation charges
    • A80 Sewer charges
    • A89 General government (other) charges
    • A91 Water utility charges
    • B89 Federal aid
    • C89 State aid
    • D89 Local government aid
    • T01 Property tax
    • T09 General sales tax
    • T15 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T19 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T28 Licenses & permits
    • T29 Licenses & permits
    • T99 Other taxes
    • U01 Special assessments
    • U11 Sale of property
    • U20 Interest earnings
    • U30 Fines & forfeits
    • U50 Private donations
    • U99 Miscellaneous

  4. 4Source file

What the numbers mean

  • Lakewood runs city-owned utilities, which add 0.5% 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
  • Part of Lakewood'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 Lakewood; the gold tick is the peer median. How categories work

The biggest difference from peers is Utilities & environment: $36 per resident, 95% below the peer median. On the revenue side, utility & transit charges is 98% below peers.

Money in

Revenue

$1,624
per resident50% below peers
Money in: Lakewood revenue per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$75427% belowpeers $1,039
$30533% belowpeers $453
$233in line withpeers $232
$17554% belowpeers $377
$10135% belowpeers $157
$4783% belowpeers $285
$898% belowpeers $384
Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 97 reporting

Money out

Spending

$1,537
per resident49% below peers
Money out: Lakewood spending per resident by category, FY2023, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$45411% abovepeers $408
$44527% belowpeers $610
$35654% belowpeers $780
$2438% abovepeers $225
$3695% belowpeers $770
$395% belowpeers $53
None reported · peers $1$0None reported
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 91 reporting

Lakewood 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
Lakewood compared with its peer municipalities, FY2023, per resident
MunicipalityRevenueExpendituresTax revenueSales taxDebt
LakewoodUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 0.5% 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.$1,624$1,537$1,031$754$33
Fort CollinsUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 32.6% 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.$3,462$4,719$1,367$1,030$1,117
ThorntonUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 13.6% 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.$2,707$2,433$1,432$1,028$1,563
WestminsterUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 12.9% 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.$3,101$3,033$1,724$1,151$2,944
BoulderUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 10.1% 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.$3,415$3,906$2,014$1,047$2,182
Peer median$3,258$3,033$1,578$1,030$1,563

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 $1,446 to FY2023 $1,624.$0$1.8K$3.6K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $2,697Peer median FY2017: $2,676Peer median FY2018: $2,963Peer median FY2019: $3,013Peer median FY2020: $3,122Peer median FY2021: $2,840Peer median FY2022: $3,641Peer median FY2023: $3,258Colorado median FY2016: $1,746 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,476 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,446FY2017: $1,617FY2018: $1,287FY2019: $1,350FY2020: $1,383FY2021: $1,498FY2022: $1,665FY2023: $1,624

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2018, FY2021, FY2022, 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$1,446$2,697$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2017$1,617$2,676$2,694 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$1,287$2,963$2,529 (75 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$1,350$3,013$2,694 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$1,383$3,122$2,739 (76 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$1,498$2,840$2,476 (227 reporting)
FY2022$1,665$3,641$3,031 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,624$3,258$3,580 (97 reporting, sample year)
Expenditures per resident
FY2016 $1,399 to FY2023 $1,537.$0$1.8K$3.5K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $2,747Peer median FY2017: $2,636Peer median FY2018: $3,505Peer median FY2019: $2,674Peer median FY2020: $2,574Peer median FY2021: $2,404Peer median FY2022: $2,769Peer median FY2023: $3,033Colorado median FY2016: $1,749 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,208 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,399FY2017: $1,372FY2018: $1,212FY2019: $1,300FY2020: $1,329FY2021: $1,191FY2022: $1,421. Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.FY2023: $1,537. 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 FY2018, FY2021, FY2022, FY2023, the same year as the census definition change. 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$1,399$2,747$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2017$1,372$2,636$2,663 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$1,212$3,505$2,387 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$1,300$2,674$2,759 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$1,329$2,574$2,485 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$1,191$2,404$2,208 (220 reporting)
FY2022$1,421$2,769$3,025 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,537$3,033$3,680 (91 reporting, sample year)
Tax revenue per resident
FY2016 $902 to FY2023 $1,031.$0$788.9$1.6K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $1,118Peer median FY2017: $1,151Peer median FY2018: $1,117Peer median FY2019: $1,167Peer median FY2020: $1,237Peer median FY2021: $1,410Peer median FY2022: $1,510Peer median FY2023: $1,578Colorado median FY2016: $705 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,072 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $902FY2017: $1,101FY2018: $774FY2019: $824FY2020: $869FY2021: $942FY2022: $1,059FY2023: $1,031

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2018, FY2021, FY2022, 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$902$1,118$705 (193 reporting)
FY2017$1,101$1,151$1,098 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$774$1,117$1,173 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$824$1,167$1,187 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$869$1,237$1,238 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$942$1,410$1,072 (201 reporting)
FY2022$1,059$1,510$1,631 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,031$1,578$1,726 (90 reporting, sample year)
Debt per resident
FY2016 $164 to FY2023 $33.$0$1.1K$2.3K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $624Peer median FY2017: $518Peer median FY2018: $1,861Peer median FY2019: $1,457Peer median FY2020: $1,844Peer median FY2021: $1,753Peer median FY2022: $2,274Peer median FY2023: $1,563Colorado median FY2016: $1,072 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,411 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $164FY2017: $127FY2018: $124FY2019: $93FY2020: $63FY2021: $142FY2022: $81FY2023: $33

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2018, FY2021, FY2022, 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$164$624$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2017$127$518$1,482 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$124$1,861$1,644 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$93$1,457$1,627 (69 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$63$1,844$1,798 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$142$1,753$1,411 (199 reporting)
FY2022$81$2,274$2,068 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$33$1,563$2,130 (91 reporting, sample year)

Questions about Lakewood’s finances

How much revenue does Lakewood collect per resident?
Lakewood collected $1,624 per resident in FY2023, 55% below the median of the 97 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Lakewood's spending per resident compare with similar cities?
Lakewood spent $1,537 per resident in FY2023, 49% below the median of its peers: Fort Collins, Thornton, Westminster and Boulder. See the figure
How much debt does Lakewood have per resident?
Lakewood carried $33 of debt per resident in FY2023, 98% below its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Lakewood compared with?
Lakewood is compared with Fort Collins, Thornton, Westminster and Boulder: 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)
+0.1%/yr
2023 estimate
Median household income
$85.8K
2023 estimate
Poverty rate
9.1%
2023 estimate
Median home value
$548.2K
2023 estimate
Housing vacancy rate
5.1%
2023 estimate

Explore further

Also in Denver Metro

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

Dataset: Lakewood, 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 Lakewood’s largest difference from its peers (95% below the peer median in FY2023). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.

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