What Can You Build Without a Permit in Colorado? (2026)
The 30-second answer for Colorado
In Colorado, the projects you can usually build without a building permit are a small detached shed, a short freestanding deck, a fence under the height cap, a low retaining wall, and cosmetic interior work. The exact limits Colorado enforces are in the table below — and your city can be stricter than the state. The catch every homeowner needs to hear: even when no permit is required, the building code, zoning setbacks, and any HOA rules still apply. Permit-exempt means the paperwork is waived, not the rules.
How Colorado sets the rules
Colorado has NO statewide building code for private/residential construction. Under home rule and CRS Title 30/31, every city and county adopts and amends its own code, and some rural counties adopt none at all (no permit required there). Denver enforces its own 2022 Denver Building & Fire Code, which amends the 2021 I-Codes (effective April 22, 2022); Colorado Springs is served by the regional Pikes Peak Regional Building Department (PPRBD), whose code tracks the 2021 IRC/IBC.
Permit-exempt limits in Colorado
These are the thresholds we verified for Colorado. Treat each one as the most you can usually do without pulling a permit — a stricter city amendment always wins.
| Project | Colorado permit-exempt limit |
|---|---|
| Detached shed / accessory building | Follows the IRC 200 sq ft baseline in both covered cities. Denver: no building permit for a detached shed with no more than 200 sq ft projected roof area, an 8-ft top plate and 14-ft maximum height (a separate zoning permit may still apply). Colorado Springs/PPRBD (105.2): no building permit if 200 sq ft or less and supported directly on grade. |
| Deck | Colorado Springs/PPRBD (105.2) matches the IRC baseline exactly: exempt if 200 sq ft or less, not more than 30 in above grade within 36 in of the perimeter, and not serving the required egress door. Denver requires a building permit once a deck is 30 in or more above grade, but adds a zoning permit for any uncovered deck more than 12 in off the ground. |
| Fence | Deviates sharply by city. Colorado Springs/PPRBD follows the IRC: no permit for fences up to 7 ft; over 7 ft is treated as an accessory structure needing a permit. Denver is far stricter than the IRC baseline: a building permit is required for most fences and walls over 4 ft (post-hole-dug fences only when over 8 ft), plus a zoning permit for any fence over 4 ft. |
| Retaining wall | Colorado Springs/PPRBD (105.2) follows the IRC: no permit for retaining walls up to 4 ft, unless supporting a surcharge or a slope steeper than 2:1. Denver deviates: it requires commercial engineering plan review and a building permit for retaining or masonry walls over 6 ft, and a zoning permit for any wall over 12 in high. |
| Patio (on grade) | At-grade concrete patios, slabs, sidewalks and platforms supported directly on grade are generally exempt from a building permit in both cities. In Denver, covered patios, porches, pergolas and carports require BOTH a building and a zoning permit regardless of height, and even a ground-level patio may trigger a zoning permit depending on the zone district. |
Baseline: 2021 International Residential Code, Section R105.2. See the national project-by-project guide for how each threshold works.
Can you do the work yourself in Colorado?
Yes in both jurisdictions. Denver: the legal owner-resident may pull a homeowner permit for a single-family home they own and occupy, must sign a notice of requirements for owner-occupier permits, occupy the home one year after completion, and pass an exam for any electrical/plumbing/mechanical work; ADUs, duplexes, condos and LLC/trust owners are excluded. PPRBD (Colorado Springs): permitted only on your owner-occupied primary residence, and it is illegal to pull a homeowner permit for work a hired contractor performs.
What's different about Colorado
No statewide code — the rules are 100% local
Colorado has no state building code for private construction; under home rule each of ~270 municipalities and 64 counties adopts (or declines to adopt) its own code and edition. In some rural, unincorporated counties there is no adopted building code and no permit requirement at all. Never assume the IRC baseline applies until you confirm your specific city or county has adopted it.
Denver runs its own code with sub-IRC fence thresholds and a dual permit system
Denver enforces the 2022 Denver Building & Fire Code, not the plain IRC. It requires a building permit for fences/walls over 4 ft (vs the IRC 7 ft) and engineered review for retaining walls over 6 ft. Denver also splits permits into BUILDING and ZONING: work can be building-permit-exempt yet still need a zoning permit.
Colorado Springs has no city building department
Permits and exemptions for Colorado Springs are handled by the regional Pikes Peak Regional Building Department (PPRBD), which also covers unincorporated El Paso County and nearby towns. Its Permit Not Required list mirrors the 2021 IRC R105.2 baseline — but the City's separate zoning setback, height and floodplain rules still apply on top.
"Permit-exempt" does not mean rule-free
I spent 25 years as a firefighter before I built PermitDeck, so let me be blunt about the part that gets people hurt. "No permit" never means "no rules." When a project is exempt in Colorado, three things are still true — and now you are the one responsible for them, because no inspector is coming to check:
- Building code still applies. An exempt deck in Colorado still has to meet the structural rules of IRC R507 — real footings, a proper ledger, and guards. A shed still has to carry your local snow and wind load. The code does not care whether a permit was pulled.
- Zoning and setbacks still apply. Exempt does not mean you can put it anywhere. Setbacks from property lines, easements, lot-coverage caps, and corner-lot sight lines all still bind you — and a neighbor complaint can force you to move it.
- HOA rules are separate. Your HOA architectural review is a private contract, not a government permit. You can be fully permit-exempt with your city and still be forced by your HOA to tear something out.
The big Colorado cities
Permits are pulled locally, so your city's building department has the final word. Here are the two largest, with a link straight to their office.
Denver
Denver Development Services Quick Permits & Exempt Work page; exempt work is defined in Denver Building & Fire Code 130.3. Sheds up to 200 sq ft are building-permit-exempt, but Denver also requires separate ZONING permits (fences over 4 ft, decks over 12 in, most sheds).
Denver building departmentColorado Springs
Pikes Peak Regional Building Department (PPRBD) Permit Not Required list, citing 105.2 — sheds up to 200 sq ft on grade, fences up to 7 ft, retaining walls up to 4 ft, and decks up to 200 sq ft/30 in are exempt, mirroring the 2021 IRC. City of Colorado Springs zoning/setback and floodplain review still apply.
Colorado Springs building departmentTurns out you do need a permit? We'll match you with pros who pull it
If your project crosses one of these Coloradothresholds, the cleanest path is to hire a licensed pro who pulls the permit in their own name and stands behind the inspection. Tell us the project once and we'll send it to up to three verified local pros. It's free, it's capped at three, and we never sell your information — the opposite of the lead-farm sites.
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What happens if you needed a permit and skipped it
Guessing wrong on the exemption is not a small risk. The common outcomes are a stop-work order, a fine (often double the normal permit fee), and being ordered to open finished work back up for inspection or tear it out. The expensive part usually lands later: unpermitted work routinely kills a home saleat the buyer's inspection, and an insurance claim can be denied if the damage traces back to unpermitted construction. Most jurisdictions do allow a retroactive (after-the-fact) permit — it costs more, but it clears the record.
Full detail: what happens if you build without a permit and how to get a building permit.
Colorado permit-exemption FAQs
Is there a single Colorado statewide list of what I can build without a permit?
No. Colorado has no statewide building code for homes, so there is no single exemption list. Under home rule, each city and county sets its own rules and editions, and some rural counties have no code or permit requirement at all. Always confirm the exemption with your specific local building department before you build.
Do I need a permit for a shed in Denver or Colorado Springs?
Both cities exempt detached sheds of 200 sq ft or less from a building permit, matching the IRC. Denver also caps the top plate at 8 ft and total height at 14 ft. Watch the zoning layer, though: Denver still requires a zoning permit for most sheds, and setback and height rules apply in both cities even when no building permit is needed.
How tall a fence can I build without a permit in Colorado?
It depends on the city. In Colorado Springs (PPRBD), fences up to 7 feet need no building permit, following the IRC baseline. Denver is much stricter: it requires a building permit for most fences over 4 feet (post-hole-dug fences over 8 feet) and a zoning permit for any fence over 4 feet. Confirm the height allowed for your yard and zone.
Can I build a deck without a permit in Colorado?
In Colorado Springs (PPRBD), a deck is exempt if it is 200 sq ft or less, no more than 30 inches above grade, and does not serve the required exit door. Denver requires a building permit at 30 inches or higher, and adds a zoning permit for any uncovered deck more than 12 inches off the ground. Covered decks always need permits.
Sources we verified against
- Denver Development Services — Quick Permits & Exempt Work (DBFC 130.3)
- 2022 Denver Building & Fire Code (amends 2021 I-Codes)
- Pikes Peak Regional Building Department — Permit Not Required (105.2)
- City of Colorado Springs — Residential Accessory Structures (zoning/setbacks)
- Colorado Office of the State Architect — Building Codes (state buildings only)
Every threshold on this page is anchored to Colorado's building code or the sources listed above. Where a number varies by city and we could not verify it, we say "verify locally" rather than guess — a permit page you cannot trust is worse than no page at all.
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