Metro Job Market Pulse · General Market Conditions · September 2026
General Market Conditions Labor Market Report: Colorado Springs, CO MSA — September 2026
Colorado Springs holds steady while Colorado's growth engine stalls.
Metro unemployment at 3.8% continues to outperform Colorado's statewide 4.0% rate, even as the state posts its third straight month of job losses and labor force participation slips to 67.4%.
Free archive edition. Published by WageScape as sent to subscribers; data as of September 2026.
Key indicators
- Metro unemployment rate: 3.8% — vs 4.0% Colorado statewide, 4.1% U.S.
- El Paso County wage growth: 5.0% YoY — Q1 2026, average weekly wage $1,437
- Colorado labor force participation: 67.4% — Down from 68.1% a year earlier
- Colorado statewide job change: -1,400 jobs — July to August 2026, third straight monthly loss
Key takeaways
Low unemployment is masking a slower growth story statewide.
Colorado Springs' 3.8% unemployment rate looks strong against the state's 4.0%, but Colorado has now posted three straight months of statewide job losses in 2026. A tight jobless rate paired with soft job creation is consistent with a labor market short on workers rather than one generating broad new demand.
Wage growth is real, but it is not outpacing national comparisons.
El Paso County wages rose 5.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026, a genuinely strong figure, yet the region's $1,437 average weekly wage still trails Colorado's statewide average and national benchmarks. For commerce leaders courting employers or talent from other metros, pay levels alone remain a modest selling point even as pay growth outperforms.
Labor force participation decline deserves more attention than the jobless rate.
Statewide labor force participation fell to 67.4% from 68.1% a year earlier, driven in part by reduced net domestic and international migration into Colorado. A metro economy that depends on in-migration for workforce growth is exposed if that inflow continues to soften, regardless of how low the unemployment rate reads.
Sector winners and losers are splitting along the same national lines.
Education, health services, and trade/transportation/utilities are driving Colorado's modest 2026 job growth projection, while information, leisure/hospitality, and professional/business services are expected to contract. Colorado Springs' own strength in professional/business services and education/health services suggests the metro is better positioned than the state average, but not immune to the same headwinds.
Median advertised pay by role — Colorado Springs, CO MSA
| Role | 25th percentile | Median advertised pay | 75th percentile | Metro trend | National median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retail Sales Associate | $31,533 | $35,360 | $37,086 | Stable | $33,325 |
| Retail Cashier | $31,532 | $33,280 | $36,296 | Stable | $31,200 |
| Warehouse/Fulfillment Associate | $34,320 | $39,520 | $43,680 | Moderate decline | $38,000 |
| CDL Truck Driver | $56,160 | $75,949 | $85,150 | Stable | $78,000 |
| Delivery Driver | $32,904 | $35,000 | $41,600 | Moderate decline | $34,344 |
| Construction Laborer | $36,773 | $41,600 | $46,800 | Stable | $40,560 |
| Electrician | $65,430 | $79,106 | $85,000 | Moderate increase | $71,404 |
| Manufacturing Production Worker/Assembler | $35,360 | $41,600 | $44,720 | Stable | $39,520 |
| Customer Service Representative | $35,360 | $39,300 | $41,840 | Moderate increase | $39,520 |
| Food Service Worker | $32,481 | $40,968 | $41,049 | Moderate increase | $33,756 |
| Certified Nursing Assistant / Home Health Aide | $38,342 | $44,793 | $46,800 | Stable | $41,106 |
| Administrative Assistant/Office Clerk | $37,583 | $44,200 | $47,500 | Moderate increase | $43,680 |
| HVAC Technician | $62,400 | $72,800 | $81,120 | Significant increase | $70,720 |
| Registered Nurse | $80,421 | $92,990 | $99,453 | Moderate increase | $102,581 |
| Software Engineer | $107,852 | $135,814 | $149,609 | Stable | $153,652 |
| Data Engineer | $108,990 | $127,500 | $157,954 | Significant decline | $139,500 |
| Accountant | $58,442 | $67,476 | $74,069 | Stable | $72,182 |
| Financial Analyst | $77,319 | $102,768 | $113,650 | Moderate decline | $94,782 |
| HR Generalist/Manager | $62,347 | $70,000 | $76,588 | Moderate increase | $75,000 |
| Marketing Specialist | $41,347 | $53,442 | $61,421 | Moderate decline | $62,354 |
| Operations Manager * | $78,593 | $95,453 | $103,143 | Significant increase | $85,216 |
| Elementary/Secondary School Teacher | $41,600 | $63,174 | $67,591 | Significant increase | $56,731 |
| Account Manager | $63,247 | $95,549 | $125,000 | Significant increase | $92,749 |
| Warehouse Manager * | $51,506 | $52,225 | $53,015 | Significant decline | $75,000 |
| Business Analyst | $81,874 | $99,775 | $109,860 | Moderate increase | $98,279 |
* State-level figure shown where metro postings were too few.
WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings (reported as the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay). Download: CSV · JSON
Industry snapshot
| Sector | Median advertised pay | Pay trend | Postings trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction | $58,760 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Manufacturing | $125,044 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Retail Trade | $39,728 | Moderate increase | Stable |
| Transportation, Warehousing & Utilities | $48,640 | Moderate decline | Significant increase |
| Information | $105,300 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Financial Activities | $55,000 | Stable | Significant increase |
| Professional & Business Services | $88,400 | Significant increase | Significant increase |
| Education & Health Services | $54,080 | Moderate increase | Significant increase |
| Leisure & Hospitality | $35,672 | Moderate decline | Moderate decline |
| Government | $70,881 | Significant increase | Significant decline |
Local market conditions
Colorado Springs unemployment held at 3.8% as of the most recent confirmed metro reading, running favorable to the state's 4.0% August figure even as El Paso County payroll growth has moderated through the year, with professional/business services and education/health services providing the clearest expansion while information and manufacturing payrolls contract statewide. Weekly wages in El Paso County climbed 5.0% year-over-year in Q1 2026 to $1,437, trailing both the state average and national benchmarks, suggesting local pay momentum remains positive but is not closing the gap with peer metros.
What it means
Divergence between a still-favorable local unemployment rate and softer statewide job creation points to a metro economy that is stable but not accelerating — a signal relevant to expansion timing, site-selection conversations, and capital investment decisions rather than any single hiring call. Colorado's negative net domestic migration and the state's slipping labor force participation rate (67.4%, down from 68.1%) raise a structural question for commerce leaders about whether the regional labor pool can support sustained business growth without continued in-migration. Current conditions suggest economic development and chamber leadership should track labor force participation alongside payroll counts, since a shrinking available workforce can constrain growth even when unemployment looks healthy.
Looking ahead
Data gap to monitor: September 2026 metro-level unemployment and payroll figures from BLS will not post until early November given standard lag, leaving commerce leaders reliant on Q1 county wage data and statewide trends in the interim. Treat any near-term local narrative as provisional until that release lands.
Worth watching: Colorado's Leeds Business Confidence Index rose 1.3 points but remains below the neutral 50 threshold, indicating cautious optimism rather than genuine expansion sentiment among state business leaders. Watch whether Colorado Springs-specific business sentiment surveys, if available, track this statewide pattern or diverge.
Emerging pressure point: Net domestic out-migration from Colorado in 2025, paired with reduced international immigration, is tightening the labor supply pipeline the state and metro have historically relied on for growth. Economic development leaders should track whether 2026 migration data shows this trend persisting or reversing.
Potential inflection point: National wage growth has slipped to 3.0% against 3.4% inflation, the first real-wage erosion in two years; if that national pattern reaches Colorado Springs, consumer spending power locally could soften even where wage growth on paper looks respectable. Monitor regional CPI and local retail/consumer sector job postings for early signs.
Methodology
Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay. WageScape observes 98% of U.S. job openings daily.
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