Moving from Denver, CO to Fresno, CA
Nobody moves to a state, they move to a city. Here is Denver and Fresno side by side on the things that decide whether the move works: housing, property tax, income tax and everyday prices.
Moving to Fresno costs about
About the same
Denver and Fresno work out within $50/mo of each other
Worth knowing
Denver and Fresno cost about the same to live in
Homes cost 1.6x more in one than the other, yet once taxes and everyday costs are counted the two land within $50 a month of each other. The sticker price on a house is a poor guide to what a place actually costs.
Denver vs Fresno at a glance
| Denver | Fresno | |
|---|---|---|
| Median home price | $603,800 | $389,400 |
| Median rent | $1,874/mo | $1,392/mo |
| State income tax | Flat 4.40% | Up to 13.30% |
| Property tax rate | 0.51% | 0.73% |
| Groceries, gas & goods | 101 | 105 |
| Utilities | 88 | 161 |
Price levels are indexes where 100 is the national average. They cover everyday spending only; housing is the two rows above.
What changes each month
| Monthly | Denver | Fresno | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing | |||
| Housing (median rent)Biggest factor | $1,874 | $1,392 | -$482 |
| Taxes | |||
| State income tax | $234 | $298 | +$64 |
| Sales tax (on everyday spending) | $43 | $119 | +$75 |
| Everyday costs | |||
| Groceries, gas & goods | $1,851 | $1,928 | +$77 |
| Utilities | $359 | $657 | +$299 |
| Total | +$30 | ||
What the move itself costs
$2,300 to $5,100
From a container you load yourself up to full-service movers.
Shipping one car adds about $600 to $850, against roughly $250 in fuel and lodging to drive it the 2-day trip yourself.
Housing and everyday prices here are for the metro area. Income and sales tax are set by state law and have no metro equivalent, so those come from Colorado and California. Compare the whole states instead to see how each metro sits against the state it is in.
Run this with your own numbers
Estimates only, not advice. Housing and income figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2024); price levels from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024); tax rates are for the 2026 tax year, compiled from state revenue departments and the Tax Foundation. Moving costs are modelled from published ranges rather than quoted. Housing and price figures are metro-area medians or averages; income and sales tax are statewide. Neither will match any particular household.