Orivian

Westminster · FY2021 municipal finance benchmarks

Adams, Jefferson counties · Denver Metro · home rule municipality · Pop. 116,182 (2025 estimate); FY2021 per-resident figures use 115,088 · Census finance data FY2016–FY2023

You’re viewing FY2021. See the latest view (FY2023). Latest Census Bureau finance data for Westminster: 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

Westminster collected $2,640 per resident (including city-run utilities), 7% above the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. Tax revenue per resident sits 32% above its peers, and 43% above the state median. Debt per resident runs 3.5× peers.

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)

$2,640
16% above peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$2,269
CO median · 227 with a published figure
$2,476
Position
Higher than 56% of the 227 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+1.5%/yr
How Colorado compares on revenue per resident

Expenditures per resident (definition)

$2,404
66% above peers
Includes city-owned utilities
Peer median
$1,446
CO median · 220 with a published figure
$2,208
Position
Higher than 56% of the 220 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
−0.4%/yr

Tax revenue per resident (definition)

$1,531
32% above peers
Peer median
$1,156
CO median · 201 with a published figure
$1,072
Position
Higher than 70% of the 201 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+5.8%/yr

Debt per resident (definition)

$2,987
3.5× peers
Peer median
$862
CO median · 199 with a published figure
$1,411
Position
Higher than 77% of the 199 reporting
5-year changenominal dollars
+2.7%/yr
How Colorado compares on debt per resident

How this number was calculated

Revenue per resident · $2,640
Reported by the city to the Census Bureau

  1. 1Metric

    $2,640 Total revenue divided by population

    = Total revenue ÷ population

    Full definition: Revenue per resident

  2. 2Inputs

    Total revenue $303.8M ÷ population 115,088 (2021 estimate)

  3. 3Census line items

    • A03 Commercial activities (other) charges
    • A60 Parking charges
    • 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
    • T11 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T15 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T19 Selective sales taxes (lodging, utilities, etc.)
    • T20 Licenses & permits
    • T24 Licenses & permits
    • T28 Licenses & permits
    • T29 Licenses & permits
    • U01 Special assessments
    • U11 Sale of property
    • U20 Interest earnings
    • U30 Fines & forfeits
    • U40 Rents
    • U50 Private donations
    • U99 Miscellaneous

  4. 4Source file

What the numbers mean

  • Westminster runs city-owned utilities, which add 16.6% 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
  • Debt per resident is 3.5× the peer median. One large bond issue can do this; check the city's annual financial report for what it funded.

Where the money comes from and where it goes

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

The biggest difference from peers is General government: $685 per resident, 72% above the peer median. On the revenue side, sales tax is 77% above peers.

Money in

Revenue

$2,640
per resident16% above peers
Money in: Westminster revenue per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$1,04177% abovepeers $588
$4392.5×peers $176
$38079% abovepeers $213
$34512% belowpeers $390
$165in line withpeers $159
$16085% abovepeers $86
$10943% belowpeers $192
Peer median of 4 peers · Colorado median of 227 reporting

Money out

Spending

$2,404
per resident66% above peers
Money out: Westminster spending per resident by category, FY2021, against the peer median. Open a category for its lines and Census item codes.
CategoryPer residentvs peers
$68572% abovepeers $398
$60129% abovepeers $466
$47491% abovepeers $248
$44418% abovepeers $377
$12925% belowpeers $172
$702.4×peers $29
$1No peer comparisonpeers $0
Peer median of 5 peers · Colorado median of 220 reporting

Westminster 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
Westminster compared with its peer municipalities, FY2021, per resident
MunicipalityRevenueExpendituresTax revenueSales taxDebt
WestminsterUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 16.6% 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.$2,640$2,404$1,531$1,041$2,987
BoulderUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 11.3% 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.$3,039$2,541$1,782$934$2,000
LongmontUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 37.1% 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.$3,522$3,114$1,371$436$3,136
Centennial$684$690$566$441$24
LakewoodUtilities: City-owned utilities (water, electric, gas, transit) brought in 0.5% 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.$1,498$1,191$942$736$142
Peer median$2,269$1,446$1,156$736$862

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 $2,451 to FY2023 $3,101.$0$1.7K$3.4K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $2,074Peer median FY2017: $2,227Peer median FY2018: $2,159Peer median FY2019: $2,273Peer median FY2020: $2,485Peer median FY2021: $2,269Peer median FY2022: $3,398Peer median FY2023: $1,624Colorado median FY2016: $1,746 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,476 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $2,451FY2017: $2,371FY2018: $2,416FY2019: $2,694FY2020: $2,940FY2021: $2,640FY2022: $3,096FY2023: $3,101

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020, 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$2,451$2,074$1,746 (224 reporting)
FY2017$2,371$2,227$2,694 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$2,416$2,159$2,529 (75 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$2,694$2,273$2,694 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$2,940$2,485$2,739 (76 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$2,640$2,269$2,476 (227 reporting)
FY2022$3,096$3,398$3,031 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$3,101$1,624$3,580 (97 reporting, sample year)
Expenditures per resident
FY2016 $2,457 to FY2023 $3,033.$0$1.5K$3K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $2,313Peer median FY2017: $2,541Peer median FY2018: $2,055Peer median FY2019: $2,159Peer median FY2020: $2,476Peer median FY2021: $1,446Peer median FY2022: $2,477Peer median FY2023: $1,709Colorado median FY2016: $1,749 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $2,208 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $2,457FY2017: $2,155FY2018: $2,719FY2019: $2,398FY2020: $2,385FY2021: $2,404FY2022: $2,460. Excludes equipment purchases and payments to other governments, which Census stopped reporting after FY2021.FY2023: $3,033. 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, 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$2,457$2,313$1,749 (196 reporting)
FY2017$2,155$2,541$2,663 (35 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$2,719$2,055$2,387 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$2,398$2,159$2,759 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$2,385$2,476$2,485 (74 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$2,404$1,446$2,208 (220 reporting)
FY2022$2,460$2,477$3,025 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$3,033$1,709$3,680 (91 reporting, sample year)
Tax revenue per resident
FY2016 $1,154 to FY2023 $1,724.$0$861.8$1.7K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $939Peer median FY2017: $1,058Peer median FY2018: $1,099Peer median FY2019: $1,167Peer median FY2020: $1,116Peer median FY2021: $1,156Peer median FY2022: $1,427Peer median FY2023: $1,031Colorado median FY2016: $705 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,072 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $1,154FY2017: $1,184FY2018: $1,328FY2019: $1,412FY2020: $1,362FY2021: $1,531FY2022: $1,651FY2023: $1,724

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020, 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$1,154$939$705 (193 reporting)
FY2017$1,184$1,058$1,098 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$1,328$1,099$1,173 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$1,412$1,167$1,187 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$1,362$1,116$1,238 (72 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$1,531$1,156$1,072 (201 reporting)
FY2022$1,651$1,427$1,631 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$1,724$1,031$1,726 (90 reporting, sample year)
Debt per resident
FY2016 $2,610 to FY2023 $2,944.$0$1.5K$3K’16’17’18’19’20’21’22’23Peer median FY2016: $236Peer median FY2017: $372Peer median FY2018: $1,540Peer median FY2019: $1,207Peer median FY2020: $1,097Peer median FY2021: $862Peer median FY2022: $1,659Peer median FY2023: $434Colorado median FY2016: $1,072 (all 224 municipalities reporting)Colorado median FY2021: $1,411 (all 227 municipalities reporting)FY2016: $2,610FY2017: $2,420FY2018: $2,998FY2019: $2,085FY2020: $1,852FY2021: $2,987FY2022: $2,805FY2023: $2,944

Fiscal year · nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation

Peer group changed in FY2017, FY2018, FY2020, 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$2,610$236$1,072 (220 reporting)
FY2017$2,420$372$1,482 (34 reporting, sample year)
FY2018$2,998$1,540$1,644 (70 reporting, sample year)
FY2019$2,085$1,207$1,627 (69 reporting, sample year)
FY2020$1,852$1,097$1,798 (71 reporting, sample year)
FY2021$2,987$862$1,411 (199 reporting)
FY2022$2,805$1,659$2,068 (73 reporting, sample year)
FY2023$2,944$434$2,130 (91 reporting, sample year)

Questions about Westminster’s finances

How much revenue does Westminster collect per resident?
Westminster collected $2,640 per resident in FY2021, 7% above the median of the 227 Colorado municipalities reporting that year. See the figure
How does Westminster's spending per resident compare with similar cities?
Westminster spent $2,404 per resident in FY2021, 66% above the median of its peers: Boulder, Longmont, Centennial and Lakewood. See the figure
How much debt does Westminster have per resident?
Westminster carried $2,987 of debt per resident in FY2021, 3.5× its peers' median. See the figure
Which cities is Westminster compared with?
Westminster is compared with Boulder, Longmont, Centennial and Lakewood: 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
2021 estimate
Median household income
$80.4K
2021 estimate
Poverty rate
6.6%
2021 estimate
Median home value
$388.3K
2021 estimate
Housing vacancy rate
4.1%
2021 estimate

Explore further

Also in Denver Metro

Revenue per resident, latest published year.

Sources

Dataset: Westminster, 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 Westminster’s largest difference from its peers (72% above the peer median in FY2021). See how that line moves month to month in your own budget-vs-actual.

Orivian applies the same sourced, governed approach to your city's own budget-vs-actual data.

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