Colorado vs North Carolina on USAspending: $8.1B vs $6.3B

Colorado’s dollars, North Carolina’s paperwork

These figures are USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Colorado’s $8.1B stock sits $1.7 billion above North Carolina’s $6.3B. Place of performance in the award file is the scoring rule. North Carolina has more people (11,046,024 versus 5,957,493) and far more awards (429,746 versus 91,723). Colorado still holds the larger dollar stock.

Colorado’s $8,052,957,089 sits on 91,723 records. North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185 is spread across 429,746. That is more than 4.6 North Carolina awards for each Colorado award. Dollars favor Colorado; paperwork volume favors North Carolina. The $8.1B versus $6.3B ranking is a dollar ranking, not a row ranking.

Colorado’s 91,723 awards on $8,052,957,089 versus North Carolina’s 429,746 awards on $6,340,179,185 is a 4.6-to-1 paperwork split on a ranking that still favors Colorado in dollars. People of 5,957,493 versus 11,046,024 produce $97.34 versus $66.77. FY2026 of $579,929,386 versus $737,511,771 favors North Carolina. Chartered freight air versus pharmaceuticals is mix. A thinner file on a larger stock is a heavier typical booking.

Half the people, higher intensity

Colorado’s 5,957,493 residents against $8.1B produce $97.34 per capita. North Carolina’s 11,046,024 residents against $6.3B produce $66.77. Intensity favors Colorado even though North Carolina has nearly twice the people and a smaller stacked total.

A $97.34 per-person reading is an intensity fact attached to $8.1B, not a household check. North Carolina’s $66.77 is attached to $6.3B. This table scores USAspending place of performance, not GDP. A thinner 91,723-award file on a larger stock is consistent with a heavier typical booking in Colorado.

Chartered freight air versus pharmaceuticals

Colorado’s top industry is nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation. North Carolina’s is pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. Those NAICS labels mark the largest grouping in each state’s file. Charter-freight awards and drug-manufacturing awards are different lead products sitting on $8.1B and $6.3B stocks.

A chartered-freight lead can concentrate transportation awards inside Colorado’s 91,723-award file. A pharmaceutical-preparation lead inside North Carolina’s 429,746-award file can sit among many smaller actions. Mix and scale both differ. Neither label is the entire stock.

FY2026: $579.9M in Colorado vs $737.5M in North Carolina

FY2026 obligations are $579,929,386 in Colorado and $737,511,771 in North Carolina. North Carolina leads the latest year, reversing a stacked ranking that favors Colorado. Recency questions belong in FY2026. The $8.1B and $6.3B totals remain the full USAspending.gov aggregate this comparison uses. Both years are obligations, not outlays.

Do not divide those FY figures by Colorado’s 91,723 or North Carolina’s 429,746 all-years awards. Per capita of $97.34 on 5,957,493 residents versus $66.77 on 11,046,024 residents is the intensity comparison. FY2026 is the cut that favors North Carolina. Stacked totals still favor Colorado.

North Carolina’s $737,511,771 FY2026 versus Colorado’s $579,929,386 already reverses $6,340,179,185 versus $8,052,957,089. 429,746 awards versus 91,723 awards remain the paperwork gulf. 11,046,024 residents versus 5,957,493 residents produce $66.77 versus $97.34. Do not fold the latest year into the stacked totals. Both cuts are USAspending.gov obligations.

Stacked lead, recency counter

Colorado leads stacked dollars ($8.1B vs $6.3B) and per capita ($97.34 vs $66.77). North Carolina leads award count (429,746 vs 91,723), population (11,046,024 vs 5,957,493), and FY2026 ($737.5M vs $579.9M). Those counters are why Colorado versus North Carolina is not a one-column story.

Nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation versus pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing is mix inside files that contain many other industries. Use the Colorado and North Carolina hubs for agencies and recipients. Keep both stocks labeled as USAspending.gov obligations.

Half the people, more of the stacked dollars

Colorado’s 5,957,493 residents versus North Carolina’s 11,046,024 residents is about a 2-to-1 Census gap. The dollar ranking still favors Colorado: $8,052,957,089 versus $6,340,179,185. Award rows run the other way, 91,723 versus 429,746. Per capita of $97.34 versus $66.77 follows from those stocks and those people. FY2026 of $579,929,386 versus $737,511,771 favors North Carolina.

Nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation versus pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing is mix. A thinner Colorado file on a larger stock is consistent with a heavier typical booking. Both cuts remain USAspending.gov obligations, not Treasury outlays. Place of performance is the scoring rule. Colorado’s $8,052,957,089 and North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185 remain USAspending.gov obligations by place of performance, not outlays.

Questions

Which state has more federal spending, Colorado or North Carolina?

Colorado leads in stacked USAspending.gov obligations: $8,052,957,089 versus North Carolina’s $6,340,179,185. North Carolina has more awards (429,746 vs 91,723) and more people (11,046,024 vs 5,957,493). Spending per capita is $97.34 in Colorado and $66.77 in North Carolina. FY2026 obligations are $579.9M and $737.5M. These are obligations, not Treasury outlays.

Does North Carolina outpace Colorado in FY2026?

Yes. FY2026 obligations are $737,511,771 in North Carolina versus $579,929,386 in Colorado. The stacked ranking still favors Colorado ($8.1B vs $6.3B). Award counts are 429,746 versus 91,723. Per capita is $66.77 versus $97.34. Populations are 11,046,024 and 5,957,493.

What industries lead Colorado and North Carolina federal awards?

Colorado’s top industry is nonscheduled chartered freight air transportation. North Carolina’s is pharmaceutical preparation manufacturing. Those slices sit on $8.1B and $6.3B obligation stocks. They mark the largest grouping in each file, not every award in either state. Award counts are 91,723 in Colorado and 429,746 in North Carolina.

Are Colorado vs North Carolina figures Treasury outlays?

No. SpendingVault uses USAspending.gov obligations. Outlays are cash payments and can lag. The $8.1B and $6.3B stacked totals and FY2026 amounts of $579.9M and $737.5M measure award commitments by place of performance, not Monthly Treasury Statement payments.