The Summit County sales tax in Colorado totals 6.25% in unincorporated parts of the county, and it runs higher inside Breckenridge, Frisco, Silverthorne, Dillon, and Blue River because each town adds its own levy on top. The 6.25% is stacked from four pieces: the state’s 2.9%, a 2.0% county base tax, a 0.75% transit tax, and a 0.6% affordable housing tax.
What Makes Up the 6.25% Rate
Colorado’s statewide sales tax is 2.9%, set by statute as a flat rate on taxable goods and services.1Justia. Colorado Code 39-26-106 – Schedule of Sales Tax Summit County adds three voter-approved levies:
- A 2.0% county base tax funding general operations, law enforcement, and administration.
- A 0.75% transit tax that goes entirely to Summit Stage, the county’s free public bus system.2Summit County, CO. About Summit Stage
- A 0.6% affordable housing tax supporting workforce and affordable housing programs.
Each of those county pieces came from a separate ballot measure, which is why the revenue is legally restricted to its stated purpose rather than pooled. Colorado law authorizes counties to levy sales taxes only after a majority of registered voters approve the proposal at an election.3FindLaw. Colorado Code 29-2-103 – Countywide Sales or Use Tax
Rates Inside the Towns
Shop inside an incorporated town and the municipal tax stacks on top of the state and county rates. Frisco charges a 2.0% town tax, bringing the total to roughly 8.375% within town limits.4Town of Frisco. Sales and Lodging Tax Breckenridge’s town rate is 2.5%, so the total is higher there.5Town of Breckenridge. Tax Rates and Revenue Distributions Silverthorne, Dillon, and Blue River each set their own rates.
A purchase in one part of the county can carry noticeably more tax than the same purchase a few miles away. Businesses charge based on the point of sale, not their mailing address, and Summit County’s tax boundaries don’t always follow intuitive lines. The Colorado Department of Revenue publishes the DR 1002 schedule each January listing every jurisdiction’s rate, and that document is the definitive reference for any rate question.6Colorado Department of Revenue. DR 1002 Colorado Sales/Use Tax Rates January 2026
What’s Taxed and What Isn’t
Colorado sales tax applies to tangible personal property: clothing, electronics, furniture, vehicles, and the like. It also applies to digital goods delivered electronically, including music downloads, e-books, and streaming video purchases, which the state treats the same as physical equivalents. Cable television, satellite TV, and satellite radio subscriptions are an exception because the state considers their primary value to be the transmission service rather than the content.7Department of Revenue – Taxation. Sales Tax Guide
Services made up entirely of labor generally aren’t taxed. Legal advice, accounting work, and similar professional services where no physical product changes hands fall outside the base. When a transaction mixes labor and a tangible product, taxability depends on whether the primary value is the service or the item.
Prescription drugs dispensed on a practitioner’s prescription are exempt at both the state and local level, as are prosthetic devices.8Colorado Department of Revenue. FYI Sales 68 Medical and Dental Supplies and Equipment Over-the-counter medications and general health products are typically taxable.
Groceries Aren’t Fully Exempt
Food bought for home consumption isn’t exempt from every tax in Summit County. The state’s 2.9% tax and the county’s 0.6% affordable housing tax don’t apply to groceries, but the county’s 2.0% base tax and 0.75% transit tax still do.9Summit County, CO. Sales Tax Food shoppers in unincorporated Summit County pay 2.75% in sales tax on most grocery items. Colorado gives cities and counties the option of taxing food, and Summit County exercises that option for its base and transit levies.10Colorado Department of Revenue. FYI Sales 4 – Taxable and Tax Exempt Sales of Food and Related Items
Lodging Tax on Short-Term Stays
Short-term lodging in unincorporated Summit County carries an additional 2% lodging tax, effective January 1, 2023.9Summit County, CO. Sales Tax That’s on top of the standard sales tax, so a hotel stay or vacation rental in unincorporated Summit County faces 6.25% sales tax plus the 2% lodging tax. Towns within the county impose their own lodging taxes as well. Property managers and online booking platforms usually handle collection, but owners who self-manage rentals need to register and remit directly.
If You’re Collecting the Tax
Any business making retail sales in Summit County needs a Colorado sales tax license before its first transaction. The application is Form CR 0100, filed through the Colorado Department of Revenue, and it asks for the business’s legal name, entity type, physical location, and a NAICS code categorizing the activity.11Department of Revenue – Taxation. How to Apply for a Colorado Sales Tax License Owners provide a Social Security number or a Federal Employer Identification Number. Once issued, the license must be renewed periodically using Form DR 0594.12Department of Revenue – Taxation. Renewal Application for Sales Tax License Businesses with multiple locations need a separate license for each site.
Getting the physical address right matters more than people expect. The difference between an address inside Silverthorne and one just outside it can shift the total rate by two percentage points or more.
Filing Frequency and Deadlines
Licensed businesses file collected tax through the Colorado Revenue Online portal.13Department of Revenue – Taxation. File Sales Tax on Revenue Online Filing frequency depends on volume. Businesses collecting $600 or more per month in state sales tax must file monthly, with returns due by the 20th of the following month; if the 20th falls on a weekend or holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. Businesses collecting more than $75,000 per year in state sales tax must pay by electronic funds transfer.14Department of Revenue – Taxation. Sales Tax Filing Information Smaller-volume businesses may qualify for quarterly or annual schedules.
One change for 2026: Colorado eliminated the state sales tax service fee (sometimes called the vendor fee or vendor discount) that previously let retailers keep a small percentage of the tax collected. As of January 1, 2026, retailers must remit 100% of state sales tax collected.15Department of Revenue – Taxation. Service Fee
Penalties and Records
Missing a deadline triggers a penalty equal to the greater of $15 or 10% of the unpaid tax, plus an additional 0.5% for each month the balance remains outstanding, up to a maximum of 18% total. Interest accrues on the unpaid balance until it’s paid in full.16FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 39 Taxation 39-26-118 Those penalties apply to state-collected taxes. Home-rule cities that administer their own sales tax set their own penalty structures, so a business operating in multiple jurisdictions could face separate penalties from the state and from a home-rule municipality.17Colorado Department of Revenue. Colorado Civil Tax Penalties and Interest
Colorado requires retailers to keep all books, accounts, invoices, and records needed to verify the correct tax amount for a minimum of three years.18Colorado Department of Revenue. Colorado Sales Tax Guide Keeping purchase invoices, exemption certificates, and filed return confirmations for four years provides a buffer against processing delays or amended returns.
Remote Sellers and Marketplace Platforms
Out-of-state sellers with more than $100,000 in annual retail sales into Colorado must collect the tax. A remote seller whose Colorado sales exceed $100,000 in the current calendar year must obtain a sales tax license and begin collecting within 90 days. If the seller exceeded $100,000 in the previous year, the obligation applies for the entire current year.19Department of Revenue – Taxation. Out-of-State Businesses
Marketplace facilitators such as Amazon and Etsy have their own collection responsibilities. When a platform contracts with third-party sellers, communicates offers between buyers and sellers, and collects payment on the seller’s behalf, the platform is treated as the retailer for tax purposes and must collect and remit. The same $100,000 threshold applies, calculated on the total of all sales the platform makes or facilitates into Colorado. Individual sellers on these platforms should verify whether the platform is already collecting Colorado tax on their behalf to avoid double-collecting.
Use Tax on Untaxed Purchases
Use tax is the counterpart to sales tax. It applies when you buy something that would have been taxed in Summit County but the seller didn’t charge sales tax, typically because the purchase was made out of state or from a vendor not registered in Colorado. The use tax rate matches the sales tax rate for your location, so a business in unincorporated Summit County owes 6.25% on untaxed equipment, supplies, or inventory.
Businesses are the ones most likely to encounter use tax obligations. Common scenarios include ordering supplies from an out-of-state vendor who doesn’t collect Colorado tax, buying equipment at a trade show in another state, or receiving goods from an online seller not registered in Colorado. The business self-assesses the use tax owed and reports it on its sales tax return. Auditors routinely check purchase journals and vendor invoices for untaxed acquisitions, and failing to self-assess is one of the most common findings in sales tax audits.