Denver (/ˈdɛnvər/) is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 United States census, a 19.22% increase since the 2010 United States census. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United States and the fifth most populous state capital. It is the principal city of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the first city of the Front Range Urban Corridor.

Denver is located in the Western United States, in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Its downtown district is immediately east of the confluence of Cherry Creek and the South Platte River, approximately 12 mi (19 km) east of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. It is named after James W. Denver, a governor of the Kansas Territory. It is nicknamed the Mile High City because its official elevation is exactly one mile (5280 feet or 1609.344 meters) above sea level. The 105th meridian west of Greenwich, the longitudinal reference for the Mountain Time Zone, passes directly through Denver Union Station.

Denver is ranked as a Beta world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. The 10-county Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 2,963,821 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 19th most populous U.S. metropolitan statistical area. The 12-county Denver-Aurora, CO Combined Statistical Area had a population of 3,623,560 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 17th most populous U.S. primary statistical area. Denver is the most populous city of the 18-county Front Range Urban Corridor, an oblong urban region stretching across two states with a population of 5,055,344 at the 2020 United States Census. Its metropolitan area is the most populous metropolitan area within a 560-mile (900 km) radius and the second most populous city in the Mountain West after Phoenix, Arizona.

In 2016, it was named the best place to live in the United States by U.S. News & World Report., receiving high marks for its desirability, job market, and net migration. With a population of close to three million and growing, the Denver metro area is an ideal place to live for everyone.

Denver has the largest public parks system of any U.S. city. The spectacular Rocky Mountains with their world-class ski resorts and amazing scenery are only minutes away.

K-12 Schools:

There is an array of education options for students that are K-12 in the Denver area. The educational focus is on choice to be able to choose what best fits the student. All of the schools in the Metro are open enrollment. This means that students living in one school district can attend a school in any other district. The metro offers:

19 public school districts
Private schools
Charter schools
Magnet schools
International baccalaureate programs
Parochial schools
Montessori schools
English Primary schools
Higher Education:

26 different colleges from School of Art & Design, Univeristy of Denver, to trade schools.

Sports:

The area is home to eight different professional sports teams. With the different teams, there is a team for any sports fan!

Colorado Avalanche – Two-time Stanley Cup champions
Denver Broncos – Three-time Super Bowl champions
Colorado Rockies – 2007 National League champions
Denver Nuggets – Basketball (NBA)
Colorado Mammoth – Lacrosse (NLL)
Colorado Rapids – Soccer (2010 MLS Cup champions)
Denver Outlaws – Lacrosse (MLL)
Denver Barbarians – Rugby (PRO)
Healthcare:

The Fitzsimmions Innovation Community + Anschutz Medical Campus, the nation’s largest scientific and medical-related redevelopment project calls Aurora home.

The U.S. News and World Report, 2020-2021 ranks several facilities among the nation’s best:

UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital

Craig Hospital

Children’s Hospital Colorado

Great Outdoors:

The City and County of Denver maintains more than 200 city and mountain parks and eight state parks in or immediately outside of the seven-county Metro Denver region. Colorado State Parks is working on an extensive trail that runs through Front Range’s diverse communities with a multi-use trail running from New Mexico to Wyoming.

– Updated 2022