Denver Colorado Short-Term Rental Market 2026 What StaySTRA Data Shows for One of the Country’s Most Contested Markets

StaySTRA data shows Denver’s short-term rental market running at a $212 average daily rate with 54 percent annual occupancy across 3,760 active listings. For a city that requires every STR license to be tied to a primary residence, those are numbers that deserve a closer look before any investor assumes Denver is off the table.

I have spent the better part of four decades watching data tell stories that the headlines miss, first as a government statistician and now as a market researcher working from my desk in Santa Fe. Denver’s 2026 STR story is one of the more interesting ones I have seen in the urban space. The market is not wide open and easy. The regulatory environment has real teeth. But the operators who are licensed and running are doing well, and the supply constraints that frustrate investors on the front end are the same constraints protecting per-unit revenue once you are inside the fence.

Denver STR Market Snapshot: What StaySTRA Data Shows

Think of ADR like the sticker price at a car dealership. It tells you what hosts are commanding per night when a guest is in the property, but it does not account for the nights the door stays closed. In Denver’s case, the sticker price of $212 pairs with a 54 percent annual occupancy rate, meaning licensed Denver hosts are generating revenue on roughly 197 nights per year on average.

Run that math and you arrive at approximately $42,800 to $43,000 in annual gross revenue for a typical Denver listing, according to StaySTRA’s Denver market data. That places Denver near the middle of the urban STR benchmark range. StaySTRA’s revenue benchmarks by market type put urban short-term rentals between $31,000 and $58,000 annually. Denver is not at the top of that range, but it earns consistently and is not dependent on a single narrow demand season.

For a well-positioned two-bedroom in a strong Denver neighborhood, the numbers improve. A 2BR commands a meaningful premium over the market average, pushing estimated annual gross revenue into the $48,000 to $52,000 range. That estimate is based on the market average combined with typical 2BR performance premiums from StaySTRA’s property type revenue analysis. It will vary by neighborhood, amenities, and how well the listing is managed.

The inventory breakdown reflects Denver’s owner-occupant operator base. One-bedroom units lead the market at 1,598 listings, roughly 35 percent of active supply. Two-bedrooms follow at 1,325 listings (29 percent), three-bedrooms at 772 listings (17 percent), and larger units making up the rest. Hosts are renting their actual homes, which means the product mix tilts toward smaller units compared to purpose-built vacation rental markets.

What Brings 37 Million Visitors to Denver Each Year

Denver’s demand base is unusually layered for an urban STR market, and that layering is what keeps the revenue floor reasonable even in January and February.

In 2024, Denver welcomed 37.1 million visitors and generated $10.3 billion in tourism spending, according to Visit Denver data. Of that total, 19.8 million were overnight visitors who averaged 2.7 nights per stay. Those are visitor numbers that rival metro areas twice Denver’s population size.

The mountain gateway function is the single largest driver. Denver International Airport, the largest airport in the United States by land area, connects major population centers to Colorado’s ski corridor. Travelers heading to Breckenridge, Vail, and Steamboat Springs regularly book a night in Denver before and after their mountain trips. This creates demand that runs through the ski season even though Denver itself sits at 5,280 feet, not 9,000.

Red Rocks Amphitheatre adds a separate demand layer from May through October. Billboard Magazine named Red Rocks the number two attended venue in the United States in December 2025, and Pollstar named it the best-attended amphitheater of 2025. Fans traveling from outside Denver for concerts need a place to stay, and the show calendar runs dense from late spring through early fall.

The Colorado Convention Center rounds out the demand picture. With more than two million square feet of flexible meeting space, Denver ranked third on Meetings Made Easy’s Top Meeting Destinations for 2025. Convention business fills rooms during shoulder months that would otherwise soften in a pure-leisure market.

Seasonality in Denver runs at about a 2.1 to 1 peak-to-trough ratio on monthly revenue, comparing July’s $4,759 average against February’s $2,241. That is a manageable swing. Pure resort markets often show ratios of four to six times between peak and trough. Denver’s diversified demand base is what keeps the floor from falling further.

The Regulatory Story: Why Supply Is the Investor Variable

Stay with me here, because this section explains why Denver’s market behaves differently from almost every other major urban STR market in the country.

Denver’s Short-Term Rental ordinance requires that every licensed STR operate from the owner’s primary residence. The city defines primary residence as the place where your habitation is fixed and where you typically return. Properties purchased as investments, second homes, or vacation properties are not eligible for a Denver STR license. Only homeowners renting their actual home, tenants with landlord permission, and certain ADU owners qualify.

The city enforces this with documentation that includes voter registration, driver’s license address, tax records, and employment location. Applications showing evidence that the property is not the operator’s usual return point are denied. This is not a soft rule. It is actively reviewed.

What this does to the market is structurally significant. It eliminates the investor acquisition model. An operator cannot buy a Denver property with the intention of licensing it as a short-term rental unless they plan to actually live there as their primary residence. That removes a large share of the potential supply that would otherwise enter the market in response to rising ADR.

StaySTRA data shows this constraint working in real time. Denver’s active listing count dropped from 4,063 in October 2024 to 3,618 in October 2025, a year-over-year decline of about 11 percent. November 2025 showed a 14 percent year-over-year reduction compared to November 2024. Meanwhile, average daily rates across peak summer months rose 8 to 10 percent. That is a supply-demand tightening pattern, and it is likely to persist as long as enforcement holds.

The number of active Denver STR licenses runs between approximately 2,600 and 3,000 based on Denver’s public permit data, against roughly 3,760 total listings active on booking platforms. The gap represents unlicensed operators, a population that is shrinking as enforcement actions increase. For licensed operators, the regulatory moat is a real competitive advantage.

Which Properties Perform Best in Denver’s Market

Two-bedroom listings in walkable urban neighborhoods consistently deliver the strongest revenue per available night in Denver’s regulated market. Properties within two miles of downtown, RiNo, Capitol Hill, and the Highlands benefit from convention demand, event traffic, and the appeal of a real Denver neighborhood over a hotel room. Three-bedroom units serve group and family travelers during ski season when parties want a base before heading to the mountains.

Studio and one-bedroom units make up the largest share of Denver’s STR inventory and carry lower absolute revenue, but also lower operating complexity. For homeowners with an accessory dwelling unit or a spare bedroom setup, a smaller licensed rental can still generate $25,000 to $35,000 annually in a well-located property.

Location within the city drives significant performance differences. Properties near the convention corridor and Lower Downtown capture business travel year-round. Properties near the I-70 mountain corridor see meaningful ski-season uplift. Suburban Denver ZIP codes carry lower ADR and less consistent demand compared to the urban core.

Denver vs. Other Colorado STR Markets

Denver does not look like Breckenridge or Vail on a comparison sheet, and understanding that difference clarifies what each market is actually offering.

StaySTRA data for Breckenridge shows an average daily rate around $400, annual occupancy near 62 percent, and average monthly revenue exceeding $5,000, producing estimated annual gross revenue around $63,000 to $64,000. Vail runs higher still on ADR, near $563 per night, with occupancy around 47 percent and similar annual revenue totals.

The mountain markets earn more per listing. That is not a surprise. Ski town demand is intense, supply is limited by geography, and the premium product commands premium rates. But entry prices reflect it. A Breckenridge or Vail property appropriate for STR use typically costs $800,000 to $1.5 million or more.

Denver’s advantage is in the entry price. A well-positioned Denver home suitable for STR use typically runs $500,000 to $700,000. At that cost basis, annual gross revenue of $43,000 to $52,000 represents a gross yield that competes respectably with the mountain alternatives, especially once you factor in that Denver has more year-round demand and less weather-driven volatility.

The StaySTRA guide to the best Airbnb markets for 2026 covers Colorado and other high-performing STR markets with a data comparison that helps investors weigh mountain versus urban positioning.

The Investor Verdict: Who Denver Is Right For

Denver works well for homeowners who already own or plan to purchase a primary residence in the city and want to generate STR income when they travel or have spare capacity. The revenue is real, the demand is durable, and the supply constraints that make licensing difficult are the same constraints protecting rates for everyone already permitted.

Denver works well for existing licensed operators who want to benchmark their performance against market norms. If your Denver STR is generating less than $43,000 annually, there is room to close the gap through pricing optimization, seasonal management, and neighborhood positioning.

Denver is not a straightforward acquisition target for investors using DSCR financing. Think of it this way: a DSCR loan finances an investment property based on projected rental income, but a Denver STR license requires the property to be your primary residence. Those two requirements point in opposite directions. An investor who buys a Denver property with DSCR financing and expects to license it as an STR is likely to find the application denied.

Investors who want to use DSCR financing to acquire a Colorado STR property are better positioned looking at markets where the licensing framework does not carry Denver’s primary residence restriction. The StaySTRA DSCR financing guide covers how to structure STR acquisition financing in markets where the lending model and the licensing requirements actually align.

For investors who own Denver property and are already licensed, the data says hold your position. ADR is rising, supply is tightening, and Denver’s fundamental demand drivers are not going anywhere. The regulatory moat that makes entry difficult is working in your favor once you are inside it.

Ready to run your own Denver numbers? Use the StaySTRA Denver STR calculator to benchmark your property against current market data for ADR, occupancy, and annual revenue projections.

We do our best to keep our data accurate and up to date, but markets move fast and we are only human. Always verify current figures directly with local sources before making investment decisions.