Short-Term Rentals in Boulder, CO (2026)

9 verified short-term rentals rules for Boulder, Colorado, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.

Verified from official government sources

Short-Term Rental Permits

Short-term rentals are illegal in Boulder without a city-issued license. Section 10-3-19(a) bars anyone from operating a short-term rental unless the city manager has issued a valid short-term rental license, and only a natural person, a trust with a natural-person beneficiary, or a qualifying nonprofit may hold one.

Boulder Requires a License for Short-Term Rentals

Heavy Restrictions

B.R.C. 1981 § 10-3-19(a)-(b)

(a)Short-term rentals are prohibited unless the city manager has issued a valid short-term rental license for the property.(b)The city manager shall only issue a rental license for short-term rental to:(1)A natural person, whose name appears on the deed to the property;(2)A trust, if the beneficiary of the trust is a natural person; or(3)A not-for-profit corporation licensed pursuant to Section...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Noise Rules

Boulder has no separate short-term-rental noise ordinance; a loud STR party falls under B.R.C. § 5-3-11, Nuisance Party Prohibited. Any owner, occupant, or renter who hosts a gathering that becomes a public nuisance, through excess noise, an open keg, or code violations by guests, can be cited, and police may order everyone to disperse immediately.

Boulder Short-Term Rental Noise & Party Rules

Some Restrictions

Boulder Revised Code (B.R.C. 1981) § 5-3-11

(a)No owner, occupant, tenant, or other person having possessory control, individually or jointly with others, of any premises shall sponsor, conduct, host, or permit a social gathering or party on the premises which is or becomes a public nuisance where such nuisance is either the intentional result of, or reasonably anticipated by, the person or persons having such possessory control. Reasona...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Taxes & Fees

Boulder imposes a 7.5 percent excise tax on the price paid for short-term rental lodging under Section 3-15-2. Renters pay it, hosts and platforms must collect and remit it, and after covering program administration costs the city routes leftover revenue into its affordable housing fund.

Boulder Short-Term Rental Tax Rate: 7.5 Percent

Some Restrictions

Boulder Revised Code § 3-15-2; § 3-15-3(a)

There is and shall be paid and collected an excise tax of seven and one-half percent on the price paid for short-term rental lodging services. This tax does not apply to any person subject to Chapter 3-3 "Public Accommodations Tax," B.R.C. 1981. [Sec. 3-15-3(a)] No person who pays for short-term lodging services shall fail to pay, and no retailer selling or otherwise furnishing short-term renta...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Occupancy Limits

Boulder ties short-term rental occupancy to the same limit that governs any other rental unit. Section 10-3-19(i) caps overnight guests in a short-term rental at whatever occupancy the Property Maintenance Code allows for that dwelling, with no separate, higher short-term rental figure.

Boulder Caps Short-Term Rental Occupancy

Some Restrictions

B.R.C. 1981 § 10-3-19(i)

The occupancy of a dwelling unit rented as a short-term rental shall not exceed the occupancy permitted pursuant to Chapter 10-2, "Property Maintenance Code," B.R.C. 1981.

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Night Caps

An accessory dwelling unit rented as a short-term rental in Boulder is capped at 120 nights a year. Section 10-3-19(o)(5) sets that limit only for ADUs; it does not apply to a principal home rented short-term, which faces no separate day cap in the ordinance.

Boulder Caps ADU Short-Term Rentals at 120 Nights

Significant Restrictions

B.R.C. 1981 § 10-3-19(o)(5)

(5)An accessory dwelling unit may not be rented as a short-term rental for more than one hundred twenty days in any calendar year;

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Host Presence Rule

Boulder does not require the host to be on-site, but every short-term rental application must list two contacts who can reach the property within 60 minutes. Section 10-3-19(c)(5) makes that response-time guarantee part of the license application itself, not an optional courtesy.

Boulder STRs Need a Contact Within 60 Minutes

Some Restrictions

B.R.C. 1981 § 10-3-19(c)(5)

(5)The names and telephone numbers of two contacts who for owner-operated rentals can be permanent residents on the property and who are capable of responding to the property within sixty minutes.

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Primary-Residence-Only Rule

Boulder only licenses a short-term rental in the unit the licensee actually lives in. BRC 10-3-19(j) requires the dwelling rented as a short-term rental to be the licensee's principal residence, and applicants must submit a sworn statement to that effect with their license application. The city manager checks this every year: licensees must recertify principal-residence status within thirty days of each license anniversary or risk losing the license.

Boulder Short-Term Rentals: Primary Residence Only

Significant Restrictions

BRC § 10-3-19(c)(1), (j), (p)

(c)Any application for a rental license for short-term rental shall include the following:(1)If the applicant is a natural person, the application must include a true copy of a Colorado driver's license or Colorado identification card showing the dwelling unit to be licensed is the applicant's address and a sworn statement that said dwelling unit is the applicant's principal residence...(j)The ...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Repeat Violator Strikes

Boulder enforces short-term rental violations through an escalating civil penalty schedule: $150 for a first violation, $300 for a second, and $1,000 for a third of the same provision. If a short-term rental operator fails to meet the licensing conditions in Section 10-3-19(c), the city manager must revoke the license outright.

Boulder STR Violations Trigger Escalating Fines

Significant Restrictions

B.R.C. 1981 § 10-3-16(a)(1), (a)(3)

(1)Impose a civil penalty according to the following schedule:(A)For the first violation of the provision, $150;(B)For the second violation of the same provision, $300; and(C)For the third violation of the same provision, $1,000;(2)Revoke the rental license;(3)If the city manager finds that a short-term rental license was issued to a licensee who is determined not to comply with subsections (1)...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Host Platform Liability

Inside a Boulder lodging business assessment area, a hosting platform that collects payment from a short-term rental lodger must set aside and remit the LBAA fee to the city. The duty lifts only if the property owner certifies in writing, under penalty of perjury, that it will pay the fee itself.

Boulder Hosting Platform Duty to Remit STR Fees

Some Restrictions

Boulder Revised Code § 8-11-19

(a)This Section 8-11-19 shall apply to every short-term rental accommodation and hosting platform doing business in the boundaries of any LBAA. However, no hosting platform(s) shall be subject to collection duties as described in this section if a short-term rental accommodation provides the city and any hosting platform a written statement, signed under penalty of perjury...verifying that the ...

Full ordinance details →Official source ↗

Looking for Boulder County county-wide rules?

County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Boulder city rules.

Short-Term Rentals in Boulder County →