Colorado Wage Garnishment Calculator
Colorado allows the lesser of 20% of disposable earnings or the amount above 40 times the state minimum wage — $606.40 a week at the 2026 rate of $15.16 — and it computes disposable earnings after health insurance premiums.
Twenty percent, with health premiums taken out first
the lesser of: (A) Twenty percent of the individual’s disposable earnings for that week; or (B) The amount by which the individual’s disposable earnings for that week exceed forty times the federal minimum hourly wage … or (C) The amount by which the individual’s disposable earnings for that week exceed forty times the state minimum hourly wage
Objections and hearings under Colorado law
- Colorado’s definition of disposable earnings subtracts health insurance withheld by your employer, not just taxes — enter your premium in the calculator.§1
- You can file a written objection and ask for a hearing to show that more of your pay is needed for actual living expenses; the court looks at the 60 days before the hearing.§1
- The floor uses the state minimum wage set under the Colorado Constitution, not a city rate such as Denver’s.§1
- Colorado indexes its minimum wage each January; the 2027 rate had not been published on our last check, so dates after December 31, 2026 ask you for the official figure.§2
A Denver-area paycheck with employer health coverage
Colorado computes disposable earnings after your employer-withheld health premium. A worker with $2,300.00 gross every two weeks, $360.00 of taxes and a $140.00 premium has $1,800.00 to work with; 20% of that is $360.00, which is below the amount over 80 hours of the $15.16 state minimum, so the garnishment is $360.00. The federal rule, which ignores the premium, would have allowed $485.00.