Population
Boulder
106,274
Lafayette
30,471
Median Income
Boulder
$85,364
Lafayette
$110,431
Home Value
Boulder
$982,600
Lafayette
$647,600
Rent
Boulder
$1,924
Lafayette
$2,042
Crime Rate
Boulder
3.22
Lafayette
2.73
Cost of Living
Boulder
191.3
Lafayette
178.6
Avg Temp
Boulder
N/A
Lafayette
N/A
Unemployment
Boulder
6.1%
Lafayette
3.8%
How Similar Are Boulder & Lafayette?
Lafayette is Boulder's #4 most similar city
5 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Boulder
106,274
Lafayette
30,471
Boulder (106,274) is about 3.5x larger than Lafayette (30,471).
Violent Crime
Boulder
3.22
Lafayette
2.73
Boulder has a 15% higher violent crime than Lafayette.
Property Crime
Boulder
27.33
Lafayette
26.81
Both cities have similar property crime — just a 2% difference.
Political Leaning
Boulder
20.8%
Lafayette
20.8%
Both cities lean Democratic with similar vote shares — 0% difference.
Unemployment
Boulder
6.1%
Lafayette
3.8%
Boulder has a 37% higher unemployment than Lafayette.
Median Income
Boulder
$85,364
Lafayette
$110,431
Lafayette has a 23% higher median income than Boulder.
Home Values
Boulder
$982,600
Lafayette
$647,600
Boulder has a 34% higher home values than Lafayette.
Education
Boulder
44.0%
Lafayette
47.1%
Both cities have similar education — just a 7% difference.
Demographics
Boulder
81.8%
Lafayette
79.3%
Both cities have similar demographics — just a 3% difference.
Cost of Living
Boulder
191.3
Lafayette
178.6
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 7% difference.
5 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Boulder and Lafayette share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Boulder
0
Lafayette
Lafayette leads in 5 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Lafayette leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDLafayette scores 251.7 on the housing index (100 = national avg) vs 310.2 in Boulder. Boulder scores 115.2 on the food index (100 = national avg) vs 134.4 in Lafayette. Lafayette scores 114.6 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 130.5 in Boulder.
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Lafayette leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSLafayette has a vacancy rate of 2.0% compared to 6.3% in Boulder. Lafayette has a median property tax of $3,066 vs $5,023 in Boulder (64% lower). Boulder has a median home value of $982,600 vs $647,600 in Lafayette (52% higher).
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Lafayette leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSLafayette has a poverty rate of 6.1% compared to 21.8% in Boulder. Boulder: 61,216 vs Lafayette: 18,172 for labor force. Lafayette has a unemployment rate of 3.8% compared to 6.1% in Boulder.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Lafayette leads
Source: FBI UCRLafayette has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.20 compared to 0.45 in Boulder. Lafayette has a property crime clearance of 23.3% compared to 15.2% in Boulder. Lafayette has a assault rate (per 1k) of 1.91 compared to 2.42 in Boulder.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Lafayette leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauLafayette has a high school diploma or higher of 55.0% compared to 47.6% in Boulder. Lafayette has a bachelor's degree or higher of 47.1% compared to 44.0% in Boulder.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBoulder has a population of 106,274, about 3.5x the size of Lafayette (30,471). Boulder skews younger with a median age of 28.8 vs 39.4.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Boulder
Lafayette
Healthcare
Source: CMS Hospital CompareNearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Boulder leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSBoulder has a bicycle of 7.6% compared to 0.7% in Lafayette. Boulder has a public transit of 5.9% compared to 2.0% in Lafayette. Lafayette has a drive alone of 61.1% compared to 41.9% in Boulder.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Boulder, CO
Compare Boulder against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.