?WhereToHQ

Residential comparison · 13 facts

Aurora, CO vs Thornton, CO

Compare the housing, tax, cost, income, safety, school, and climate facts that are available for both places. The table shows the numbers without declaring one city universally better.

A household earning $85,000 in Aurora needs about $88,500 in Thornton to keep the same lifestyle.
Coming from Thornton, $85,000 of lifestyle costs about $81,500 in Aurora.

A few differences

Aurora vs Thornton · facet by facet
FacetAurora, COThornton, CO
Median home price$469,100$517,500
2-bedroom rent$1,886/mo$1,975/mo
Property tax rate0.5%0.5%
State & local income tax2.89%2.89%
Sales tax7.8%7.8%
Cost of living index114118
Groceries index100100
Utilities$160/mo$160/mo
Median household income$88,368$103,088
Unemployment rate3.7%3.7%
Crime index52/10052/100
School rating6.5/106.5/10
Sunny days / year245 days245 days

Data: Census ACS 2024 · BLS · Tax Foundation 2024 brackets · HUD/Zillow · NOAA 1991–2020 · FEMA NRI · Values are shown as reported; no universal winner is implied.

Full profiles: Aurora, CO · Thornton, CO
Questions & answers
Is Aurora cheaper than Thornton?
Aurora has the lower day-to-day cost index (114 vs 118 against a national 100). The other differences are shown facet by facet in the table.
What household income in Thornton equals $85,000 in Aurora?
A household earning $85,000 in Aurora needs about $88,500 in Thornton to keep the same lifestyle; coming the other way, $85,000 of Thornton lifestyle costs about $81,500 in Aurora.