Colorado · 2026 planning data
Colorado SUTA rate and employer cost for 2026
Colorado's sourced 2026 unemployment-insurance model uses a taxable wage base of $30,600 per employee and a 3.05% standard new-employer rate. The assigned rate can differ after an acquisition, experience rating, industry classification, or state assessment.
How the Colorado SUTA line is estimated
State unemployment tax applies only up to the annual UI wage base for each employee. For an employee earning at least $30,600, the planning calculation is:
min(UI-taxable wages, $30,600) × 3.05% = up to $933The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 3.05%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.
What this Colorado estimate does not include
Colorado employers owe one mandatory cost that this calculator does not add to the total, because it depends on facts the calculator never asks for — how many people the employer has, which city the work happens in, how much payroll it runs in a quarter. Adding it to every employer would overcharge the ones the rule does not reach, so it is named here instead of buried in a number.
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FAMLI premium, employer share — about $264 a year for a $60,000 employee
0.44% employer share of the 0.88% premium, up to the Social Security wage base
Applies when: Employers with 10 or more employees.
Source: Colorado Family and Medical Leave Insurance Division
What changes the real employer cost
- The 2026 non-construction, general-construction, and trades introductory total is 3.05% on the first $30,600 of wages, including support and solvency components.
- Heavy construction starts at 6.285%. The combined experienced range is 0.72% to 10.85%; use the assigned total rate for exact results.
- Employer Social Security, Medicare, and FUTA remain separate federal cost lines.
- Workers compensation in Colorado runs 96% of the national median — 4% below it, 28th of 51 jurisdictions at $1.05 per $100 of payroll (Oregon DCBS 2024 premium rate ranking). That is a relativity between states, not your rate: class code, carrier, payroll exposure and experience modifier decide what you actually pay.
- Health benefits, retirement contributions, payroll software, and HR administration depend on the employer's choices.
Use the calculator's custom SUTA field whenever an official notice supplies a different rate. Read the SUTA rate guide and employer payroll tax guide before relying on a planning result.
Colorado employer cost questions
What is the Colorado SUTA wage base for 2026?
The sourced taxable wage base used by EmployerCost is $30,600 per employee. Wages above that cap are not included in this SUTA line, but can still affect Social Security, Medicare, benefits, workers compensation, and other costs.
What rate should a new Colorado employer use?
The standard sourced new-employer rate in the EmployerCost model is 3.05%. A transferred experience account, special industry rule, assessment, or employer notice can produce a different total.
Is SUTA the full cost of a Colorado employee?
No. Start with salary, then add employer FICA, FUTA, SUTA, workers compensation, benefits, and payroll administration. The Colorado calculator keeps uncertain items as ranges.
Official sources
- Colorado CDLE 2026 combined premium schedules
- U.S. Department of Labor — Significant Provisions of State UI Laws, effective January 2026
Verified against official sources July 30, 2026.
General planning information only. Not payroll, tax, legal, insurance, or HR compliance advice.