Cold semi-arid
Fort Carson, Colorado
El Paso County, Colorado · Population 18k · 5,558 ft elevation
Living in Fort Carson
Fort Carson has a cold semi-arid climate: hot summers (July highs around 89°F) and cold winters (January lows around 21°F).
Precipitation is dry at about 16″ a year, and it gets a fair bit of snow (33″ a season).
Skies are exceptionally sunny (74% of possible sunshine). It never gets truly muggy.
Air quality is moderate: a median AQI of 46 and virtually no unhealthy-air days.
Fort Carson is an outdoor hub: about 20% of the land within 30 miles is public (parks, national forest and the like), and the terrain rises and falls about 4,800 ft around town.
Fort Carson at a glance
- Population
- 18k
- Elevation
- 5,558 ft
- Average daily high
- 66°F50th percentile
- Average daily low
- 39°F15th percentile
- Annual precipitation
- 16″10th percentile
- Annual snowfall
- 33″73th percentile
- Sunshine hours per year
- 3,308 hrs87th percentile
- Median AQI
- 4673th percentile
- Median rent
- $2,046/mo88th percentile
- Median household income
- $62k32th percentile
- Top state income-tax rate
- 4.4%
- Sales tax (state + local)
- 7.9%
- Unemployment rate
- 3.0%
- Homes with broadband
- 98%93th percentile
- Walkability index
- 7.126th percentile
- Average commute
- 11 min
- Math proficiency (8th grade)
- 34%31th percentile
- Reading proficiency (8th grade)
- 46%
- Violent crime rate
- 368 per 100k78th percentile
- Property crime rate
- 1,693 per 100k
- Overall natural-hazard risk
- 9461th percentile
- Outdoor access
- 9191th percentile
- Public land within 10 miles
- 6%
- Public land within 30 miles
- 20%
- Mountain relief within 30 miles
- 4,823 ft
Climate by month
| Month | High | Low | Precipitation | Snow | Sunshine |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 47°F | 21°F | 0.3″ | 4.9″ | 219 hrs |
| Feb | 49°F | 22°F | 0.3″ | 4.6″ | 206 hrs |
| Mar | 57°F | 29°F | 0.8″ | 5.7″ | 266 hrs |
| Apr | 63°F | 36°F | 1.4″ | 5.5″ | 281 hrs |
| May | 73°F | 46°F | 2.0″ | 0.6″ | 311 hrs |
| Jun | 84°F | 55°F | 2.3″ | — | 342 hrs |
| Jul | 89°F | 60°F | 3.1″ | — | 345 hrs |
| Aug | 86°F | 59°F | 3.0″ | — | 330 hrs |
| Sep | 79°F | 51°F | 1.4″ | 0.2″ | 300 hrs |
| Oct | 67°F | 39°F | 0.8″ | 2.5″ | 264 hrs |
| Nov | 55°F | 28°F | 0.4″ | 4.4″ | 232 hrs |
| Dec | 47°F | 21°F | 0.2″ | 4.1″ | 211 hrs |
Near Fort Carson
- Fountain, CO · 29k
- Security-Widefield, CO · 39k
- Stratmoor, CO · 6.4k
- Cimarron Hills, CO · 19k
- Colorado Springs, CO · 483k
- Manitou Springs, CO · 4.8k
- Air Force Academy, CO · 6.7k
- Penrose, CO · 4k
Largest places in Colorado
- Denver, CO · 714k
- Aurora, CO · 390k
- Fort Collins, CO · 170k
- Lakewood, CO · 156k
- Thornton, CO · 143k
- Arvada, CO · 123k
- Westminster, CO · 116k
- Pueblo, CO · 112k
Sources: NOAA climate normals, NASA POWER, EPA air quality, U.S. Census Bureau, FEMA, FBI, EPA walkability and EDFacts. Methodology