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DENVER – The Colorado Chamber Foundation and Aspen Technology Labs today released their jobs report for the second quarter (Q2) of 2026, showing renewed growth in job vacancies statewide, rising wages and notable strength in the outdoor recreation industry. The report utilizes Aspen’s database of more than 10 million job vacancies worldwide from over 300,000 companies to provide real-time workforce and jobs data.
Colorado had 127,508 active job postings in June, up 1.5% from June 2025 and 1.1% from March. The increase reversed the year-over-year declines reported in the first quarter, although Colorado’s annual growth remained below the national increase of 3.7%.
Wages also continued to rise. Colorado’s median advertised full-time salary reached $67,590 in June, up 4.4% from a year earlier and ranking 11th nationally compared to 13th in Q1. The state’s median full-time salary remained $5,356 above the U.S. median.
“Colorado’s return to growth in job vacancies is an encouraging sign for our state economy, particularly as employers continue to offer competitive wages and expand opportunities for Coloradans to enter the workforce,” said Rachel Beck, executive director of the Colorado Chamber Foundation. “The data also underscores the importance of strengthening our talent pipeline and ensuring employers can find the skilled workers they need.”
“April was Colorado’s strongest month for job postings since August 2025,” said Michael Woodrow, president of Aspen Technology Labs. “Growth was uneven across categories: white-collar postings rose 7.2% year over year, while a 2.4% decline on the blue-collar side was concentrated in restaurants, the state’s largest posting category, even as production and warehouse postings grew. The overall picture is one of renewed growth, with white-collar hiring turning positive after both segments fell in the first quarter.”
According to the report, hiring varied significantly across industries. Engineering postings increased 19.5% year-over-year, information technology rose 14.1%, business services grew 12.4% and production increased 10.7%.
The steepest declines in job postings came from the restaurant industry. Year-over-year, restaurant jobs were down 9.9%, far exceeding the national decline of 2.3%. This comes as the state’s restaurant industry continues to drive headlines for closures and operational pressure.
One of the report’s most notable findings came from Colorado’s outdoor recreation sector, which was this quarter’s industry spotlight. A selected sample of 50 outdoor recreation employers posted 1,580 vacancies in June, up 17.3% year-over-year. Hiring typically begins to accelerate in late summer as resorts prepare for the winter season, making the June increase an early indicator of stronger seasonal staffing demand.
“This encouraging hiring activity underscores the resilience of Colorado’s outdoor recreation industry as employers continue to navigate workforce and housing challenges in many mountain communities,” said Beck.
Outdoor recreation hiring extends well beyond traditional recreation roles. Food and beverage positions accounted for 40% of postings in the report’s sample, followed by lodging and guest services at 16%, while recreation-specific positions such as ski coaches and lifeguards represented 8%. Demand was concentrated in resort communities including Aspen, Vail and Keystone, although the Denver metro accounted for roughly one-quarter of postings.
Career-connected learning opportunities were a particular bright spot of the report. Internship postings totaled 1,180 in June, up 10.7% year-over-year, while apprenticeship postings reached 1,503, up 11.7%. Both grew significantly faster than overall statewide job postings.
The growth aligns with one of the five recommendations of the Colorado Chamber’s Education to Employment Allianceto streamline and incentivize employer participation in career-connected learning opportunities. The Alliance is focused on strengthening connections between education and employment so more students can gain meaningful work experience while businesses build stronger talent pipelines.
Across all industries, Durango (+14.5%), Alamosa (+12.8%) and Boulder (+9.9%) recorded the strongest year-over-year job vacancy gains among major Colorado metro areas. The Western Slope also saw significant quarterly growth, led by Montrose (+21.5%), Grand Junction (+18.9%) and Durango (+15.9%). Boulder reported the highest median salary ($75,920) and year-over-year percent change (+11.4%), followed by Denver ($71,001) and Colorado Springs ($67,267).
To view the full Q2 2026 jobs report, visit: https://cochamber.com/wp-content/uploads/Colorado-Chamber-of-Commerce-Q2-2026-Final.pdf
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The Colorado Chamber of Commerce champions free enterprise, a healthy business environment and economic prosperity for all Coloradans. It is the only business association that works to improve the business climate for all sizes of business from a statewide, multi-industry perspective. What the Colorado Chamber accomplishes is good for all businesses, and that’s good for the state’s economy. It was created in 1965 based on the merger with the Colorado Manufacturers’ Association.