Industries & Companies

Boulder has a diverse economy representing a variety of industries. Most employment is in government (including the University of Colorado and federal labs) and the professional services, manufacturing, accommodations and food services, retail, health care, and information industries. A list of Employement by Industry and Boulder’s Largest Employers can be found below.

Employment in city of Boulder by Industry (2010)
Industry Firms Employees Average Wages
Government (Federal, State, Local)* 47 18,722 $52,707
Professional, scientific, technical services 1,834 13,116 $87,709
Manufacturing 255 8,266 $78,142
Accommodation and food services 656 7,720 $17,820
Retail trade 590 7,586 $28,760
Health care and social assistance 656 7,720 $43,590
Information 221 6,461 $94,865
Finance and insurance 383 3,160 $91,980
Administrative and Support services 284 2,825 $36,206
Wholesale trade 435 2,499 $74,981
Other services 501 2,736 $37,333
Construction 331 1,448 $46,669
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 135 1,768 $18,935
Real estate and rental and leasing 372 1,298 $41,706
Educational services (private) 149 1,305 $28,198
Management of companies & enterprises 55 371 $98347
Transportation and warehousing

43

751 $40,248
Total 6,792 88,640 $57,533

Largest Employers in Boulder
Employer
University of Colorado Boulder
IBM Corporation
Boulder Valley School District
Ball Aerospace
Boulder Community Hospital
Covidien
Boulder County
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
City of Boulder
MicroMotion
Whole Foods
Ricoh Production Print Solutions
InfoPrint Solutions
Lockheed Martin
Markit On Demand
Crispin Porter + Bogusky
Spectra Logic
Amgen
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Array BioPharma
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
YMCA of Boulder Valley
The Hain Celestial Group
Research Electro Optics
Corden Pharma Colorado
Google

The city has a high concentration of employment in several key industry clusters including:

  • Aerospace
  • Biosciences
  • Data Storage
  • Natural & Organic Products
  • Outdoor Recreation
  • Renewable Energy
  • Software
  • Tourism

*Includes the University of Colorado and federal labs

Source: Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, QCEW Q1-Q4 2010 (unrevised); University of Colorado, Business Research Division

Top employers include the University of Colorado, Boulder Valley School District, IBM, Ball Aerospace, and Boulder Community Hospital.