How Much Does Jury Duty Pay in Colorado? $50 a Day, but Who Pays It Changes

The summons arrives in an ordinary envelope, and the first thing most people do is the math. How much does jury duty pay in Colorado, and how much work will I miss. Colorado answers that question with a split system that is more generous than most states for employed jurors and less generous than it looks for everyone else, and the split is worth understanding before your service date, because it decides whether you need to save, ask your employer questions, or request a hardship hearing.

Colorado law, in section 13-71-126 of the Colorado Revised Statutes, requires employers to pay regularly employed jurors their regular wages for the first 3 days of service, capped at $50 a day, unless employer and employee agree to more. Regular employment is broader than full time work. Part time, temporary, and casual workers qualify if their hours can be determined from a schedule, custom, or practice established during the 3 months before service. If your normal wage is below $50 a day, the employer pays your actual wage, not $50. If your normal wage is $200 a day, the employer owes $50 a day under the statute, and the remaining $150 a day is a loss unless your employer voluntarily pays more.

How much does jury duty pay in Colorado: day 4 and beyond

From the fourth day onward, the state pays $50 a day for each additional day of service, under section 13-71-129. A five day trial for an employed juror therefore pays $150 from the employer for days 1 to 3, plus $100 from the state for days 4 and 5, for $250 in total court related pay. Compare that with a normal five day week at $200 a day, which is $1,000, and the gap is obvious. Colorado protects your job and covers part of your pay. It does not replace your income, and nobody should plan as if it does.

Self employed and unemployed jurors face a thinner version. With no employer to pay the first 3 days, they receive nothing for those days from the court system, and the $50 a day state rate starts on day 4. There is one exception worth knowing. If an employer would suffer genuine financial hardship by paying, or if a self employed juror faces hardship, the court can order the state to pay up to $50 a day for the first 3 days as well. That hardship route requires a request and a hearing, and the employer must seek it in writing within 30 days of receiving the juror service acknowledgment. It is not automatic, and it is not something to leave until the week of service.

Mileage is separate from daily pay. Colorado reimburses jurors at the rate paid to state officers and employees for miles actually traveled between home and the courthouse. Published summaries put the 2026 rate at $0.65 per mile for standard vehicles and $0.69 per mile where four wheel drive is required. A 20 mile round trip at $0.65 a mile is $13.00 a day, which will not cover a tank of gas for a week, but it is real money and it is easy to forget to claim. Keep a note of your mileage each day, because reconstructing it at the end of a two week trial is a chore nobody enjoys.

Federal jury duty in Colorado follows separate federal rules, not the state split described here, so check your summons carefully. A federal summons and a state summons look similar in the mailbox and pay differently. Municipal court juries can also pay differently, with some municipal rates far below the state rate, so the court named on your summons is the detail that decides your pay. Estimate your own case on the jury duty pay calculator with your service length and employment type, and take the result to your employer conversation rather than guessing in it.

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