Does Colorado tax Social Security?
Taxes Social Security for some people
Partly. If you are 65 or older, Colorado lets you subtract all of the Social Security that is taxed on your federal return. From age 55 to 64, you can subtract all of it if your adjusted gross income is no more than $75,000 (single) or $95,000 (joint); above that, the subtraction is capped at $20,000.
What the Colorado Department of Revenue says
We do not paraphrase the rule from memory. This is the state's own wording, copied from the page linked below it:
“For tax years 2022 and later, individuals age 65 or older at the end of the tax year can subtract the full amount of Social Security benefits included in their federal taxable income.”
“For income tax years beginning January 1, 2025, and after, taxpayers age 55 to 64 at the end of the tax year may subtract the entire amount of Social Security benefit income included in their federal taxable income if their adjusted gross income does not exceed the following thresholds:”
Details worth knowing
- The thresholds the department lists are $75,000 for a single filer and $95,000 for a joint return. For incomes above them, the department says "the cap remains at $20,000."
- Under age 55, the subtraction is generally limited to pension and annuity income received as a death benefit.
Federal tax is a separate question
Whatever Colorado does, the IRS decides on its own how much of your benefit is taxable on your federal return. Whether it does depends on your other income. Our taxable Social Security calculator follows the IRS worksheet line by line, and this guide explains the rule.
You can ask Social Security to withhold federal tax from each payment. Withholding for Colorado state tax, if you need it, is arranged with the state, not with Social Security. State rules change with new laws, so check with the Colorado Department of Revenue before you file.
Other states where the answer is “taxes Social Security for some people”
Check our work
The answer above comes from this page. Follow the link and compare.
- Income Tax Topics: Social Security, Pensions, and Annuities (revised January 2025)Colorado Department of Revenue. Read on November 12, 2026.