Colorado Springs ranked in the top 10 cities where Black Americans fare best economically, according to a 2023 SmartAsset study.

Colorado Springs came in ninth among 200 of the nation’s largest cities, of which, only 133 had available data on median Black household income, Black homeownership rate, Black labor force participation rate, poverty rate for Black residents, percentage of Black adults with a bachelor’s degree and percentage of business owners who are Black.

Colorado Springs had the eighth-lowest poverty rate for Black residents within the study at 11.6%. Over 71% of Black residents ages 16 and over were in the labor force, which was higher than 116 other places that were a part of the study. Plus, 32.4% of Black adults in Colorado Springs have a bachelor’s degree, which ranked 22nd in the study.

Local economist Joe Craig, a University of Colorado Colorado Springs economics professor as well as interim director for the university’s Economic Forum, said he found the report a little bit surprising.

“It’s an overall positive,” Craig said. “But it has limitations.”

The study procured reliable information using different data sets from the U.S. Census Bureau, Craig said, but the study’s findings could be somewhat misleading.

He thought Colorado Springs’ higher income level on average, coupled with a lower Black population, might mean Colorado Springs is a place wealthier Black residents come to live, but that the city doesn’t necessarily initiate or champion Black wealth.

The large military presence within the city could also contribute to some of the city’s positive results when it came to factors such as a high labor force participation rate among Black residents.

Kendall Godley, a director for the Colorado Springs Black Chamber of Commerce and an attorney at Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, said he would also be interested in how the military contributed to Black residents’ economic outcomes as opposed to Black residents in the private sector — a distinction the study did not make.

While Godley found the data interesting, he thought it was limited in scope and not comprehensive enough.

“I think what they mention are bare minimum tests,” Godley said.

He thought the city still needed to improve when it came to offering affordable housing, attracting employers focused on diversity and bringing Black voices to the forefront of the community.

“I think this is kind of the sentiment in all cities where Black people are trying to get a piece of the pie for themselves,” Godley said. “We need more barriers removed.”

Juaquin Mobley, a director of the Colorado Springs Black Chamber of Commerce and a Colorado Springs social enterprise entrepreneur, meaning he focuses on a “give back” business model, said the information measured up well based on his personal experience.

There is a lot of business support for racial minorities in the Colorado Springs community, Mobley said.

“I think it’s really good information and while it might not be completely comprehensive, I think it’s a start,” Mobley said. “And I think when people outside of Colorado read that information some of those individuals we need here to come spark some more ideas, I think they’re going to entertain it and potentially come here.”