What is the population of Thornton city?

Thornton city has 142,878 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #6 of 482 in Colorado.

What is the median household income in Thornton city?

Median household income in Thornton city is $100,985 a year, 28.6% above the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Thornton city?

Median gross rent is $1,810 a month and the median home value is $482,200, so rent absorbs about 21.5% of median household income.

Is Thornton city affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 4.8× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Thornton city is less affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 21.5% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

Aerial view of a dense city center, illustrating the US cities ZIP code directory

Colorado · Census place 77290

Thornton, CO population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Thornton, Colorado (Thornton, CO — Census place “Thornton city”) is 142,878 residents, ranking #6 of 482 places in Colorado. Median household income is $100,985, the median home is worth $482,200 and median gross rent runs $1,810 a month. Looking for the Thornton Colorado ZIP code list? 6 ZIP codes serve Thornton, CO: 80023, 80229, 80233, 80241, 80260, 80602.

Population: 142,878Thornton city residents
Median household income: $100,985Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $482,200Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $1,810Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 34.3 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 73.1%Owner-occupied households

Thornton ZIP codes (Colorado)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Thornton.

The Thornton CO ZIP code list below covers 6 ZIP codes. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

What the numbers mean in Thornton city

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Thornton city median would spend about 21.5% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 4.8× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 7.3% of residents and 73.1% of households own their home.

Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year

Thornton city, CO in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Thornton city is a mid-size city in Colorado, with 142,878 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #6 of 482 ranked by population — larger than 98% of them. The median age here is 34.3 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly younger profile than the country as a whole. At this size the Census also publishes one-year estimates; the five-year values used here are steadier and let you compare against smaller neighbours on the same basis.

Households in Thornton city earn a median of $100,985 a year, 28.6% above the national figure of $78,538 and 17% above the $86,484 median for the 223 Colorado cities we cover. Median household income counts every pre-tax dollar arriving at an address — wages, self-employment, Social Security, pensions, interest and public assistance — for everyone living there, so multi-earner households pull the figure up even where individual pay is modest. Poverty reaches 7.3% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Thornton city is valued at $482,200, 58.9% above the national figure and 6% above the $453,600 peer median, while median gross rent runs $1,810 a month, 28.7% above the national figure, or roughly $21,720 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 21.5% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is within the standard affordability guideline. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 4.8×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is harder here than in the average US market. 73.1% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans toward owners. Rent is reported gross — contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities — which is why it runs above the advertised price on a listing for the same unit.

All values below were released by the Census for this exact geography, with no gap-filling on our side. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.

Compare with nearby places

Places of similar size in Colorado.

More Colorado coverage.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Thornton city?: Thornton city has 142,878 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #6 of 482 in Colorado.
What is the median household income in Thornton city?: Median household income in Thornton city is $100,985 a year, 28.6% above the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Thornton city?: Median gross rent is $1,810 a month and the median home value is $482,200, so rent absorbs about 21.5% of median household income.
Is Thornton city affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 4.8× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Thornton city is less affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 21.5% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Thornton city data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. At this size the Census also publishes one-year estimates; the five-year values used here are steadier and let you compare against smaller neighbours on the same basis.