How to pay Colorado estimated taxes.

Do you need to pay?

In most cases you must pay estimated tax if you expect to owe more than $1,000 in net Colorado tax for 2026 after subtracting withholding and credits.

Pay the smallest of: 70% of your actual 2026 net Colorado tax; 100% of your 2025 net Colorado tax (only if your 2025 federal AGI was $150,000 or less, or $75,000 or less if married filing separately); or 110% of your 2025 net Colorado tax. The prior-year options require a 12-month prior year and a filed Colorado return. If at least two-thirds of your income is from farming or fishing, you can use 50% of current-year tax.

If you underpay: Colorado's 2026 interest rate is 11%, or 8% if you pay before a notice of deficiency or within 30 days of one. The estimated tax penalty is computed on Form DR 0204.

For how to pick a safe amount, see how much to pay in estimated taxes.

Deadlines

Four equal installments due April 15, June 15, and September 15, 2026, and January 15, 2027. This matches the federal schedule.

A date on a weekend or holiday moves to the next business day. Pay at least two business days early.

Paying Colorado, step by step

What you need

• Nothing to set up. Revenue Online takes payments without an account.
• Your Social Security number and a copy of last year's Colorado return.
• Your bank routing and account numbers.

Start at Revenue Online, Colorado's official payment site.

1. Go to Revenue Online. You do not need to log in.
2. In the Payment Options box, click Make a Payment, then choose Debit or Credit Card or E-Check.
3. Enter your taxpayer information, then click Add/Edit Payment and Add Payment.
4. Choose Individual Income Tax as the account type, enter your SSN, the filing period, Estimated Payment as the payment type, and the amount without fees.
5. Click Add, then OK, then Pay Online and follow the prompts. You do not mail DR 0104EP when you pay online.

Other ways to pay: Card and e-check payments in Revenue Online may carry a small processing fee (amount not stated on the official pages). EFT is available if you register in advance. You can also mail a check payable to Colorado Department of Revenue with the DR 0104EP voucher to Denver, CO 80261-0008, writing your SSN, the tax year, and DR 0104EP on the check.

Extension payments

Colorado gives an automatic six-month extension to October 15 with no form to file. It does not extend the time to pay: pay at least 90% of your tax by April 15 to avoid penalties, and any remaining balance accrues interest only. Pay the extension amount through Revenue Online or mail it with Form DR 0158-I.

Make this year's first estimated payment as a separate transaction, marked as an estimate for the current year.

Good to know

• Colorado's current-year safe harbor is 70%, lower than the federal 90%.
• If your 2025 federal AGI was over $150,000, the 100% prior-year option is not available, so you must use 110% of last year or 70% of this year.
• Estimated payments cannot be refunded until you file your Colorado return.
• No penalty is figured on the fourth installment if you file and pay in full by January 31, 2027 (per DR 0204).
• Moved this year? You may owe estimates to both Colorado and your other state for the part of the year you lived or earned income in each.
• Paying the IRS too? Follow the federal walkthrough. Other states each have a guide of their own.

Official sources

Checked October 2026 against the Colorado Department of Revenue's own publications.

• Individual Income Tax: Estimated Payments
• 2026 DR 0104EP Individual Estimated Income Tax
• Pay by Credit/Debit or E-Check
• Income Tax Due Dates and Filing Extension
• Tax Topics: Penalties and Interest

This guide is for general education and reflects rules as of October 2026. Tax law and agency websites change, and your situation may have details that change the answer. Please talk with your tax professional before acting on it.