What the state and the City ask of a room, what the licenses cost, how the bill is taxed, what the team costs, and the nights that fill the city, for anyone running a club, lounge or bar in Denver.
The State of Colorado and the City and County of Denver both license a room, and the City sets the noise, door and entertainment rules. Liquor licenses come from the Denver Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection.
Service runs from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week, and the same window applies under Colorado law. A cabaret may not offer entertainment when alcohol sales are barred, and the City can set earlier entertainment hours for a neighborhood. No separate clear-out time turned up. A 2025 bill would have let a city opt into 2:30 a.m. sales and 3 a.m. drinking, but it died in committee, so Denver has no later hours.
Denver makes it unlawful to act as a security guard without a license, and unlawful for an employer to put an unlicensed person on security work. The individual license costs $25 to apply and $25 a year. Applicants show a basic training course of at least 16 hours, finished within 60 days before the application.
MoreThe employer needs its own private security employer license too, at $100 or $200 depending on whether it has fewer than 25 agents.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 42A door attendant, ID checker or crowd monitor is exempt only if they carry no weapon, wear no uniform that reads as security or police, cannot start confrontations or take property, and cannot physically detain or eject anyone.
MoreIn practice a bouncer who can remove guests needs the license. Whether a venue’s own employees count as a private security employer was not confirmed.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 42It is unlawful to sell an alcohol beverage to anyone under 21. A cabaret has its own age rules at the door, covered below.
MoreAccepted IDs and ID-scanner rules couldn’t be confirmed, so check them with the state Liquor Enforcement Division.
Source: C.R.S. 44-3-901A tavern manager is registered with fingerprints and a $30 fee to the City and the state. A manager can manage only one tavern. A change of manager is reported within five days, and the new manager is registered within 30 days.
MoreDenver’s code does not require alcohol server training in the sections read. State responsible vendor training wasn’t confirmed.
Source: Denver tavern pageA tavern license sells beer, wine and liquor to drink on the premises and requires a minimum of sandwiches and light snacks. A hotel and restaurant license needs a full kitchen, food service from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and at least 25% of gross annual income from food.
MoreA new tavern must sit at least 500 feet from schools, colleges, universities and seminaries. Denver dropped that distance rule for hotel and restaurant licenses in 2012.
Source: Denver hotel and restaurant pageA licensed room with live entertainment or dancing needs a cabaret license, and the class sets what is allowed. A dance cabaret covers live or recorded entertainment with patron dancing, which includes a DJ night. Standard and acoustic classes allow no patron dancing.
MoreClubs and arts license holders, city-leased facilities and special event cabaret permits are exempt, but exempt operators still file a plan to keep underage patrons from alcohol.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 6A standard, dance, special dance, acoustic or events center cabaret may not admit anyone under 21 after 10:30 p.m. with entertainment, or when patrons dance, unless a parent or guardian is with them. A cabaret with an underage patrons license may admit patrons 16 and over. Adult cabarets are 21 and over only.
MoreThere are exceptions for restaurants with entertainment in a separate room and for special event permits. Entertainers under 21 need written parental consent or manager approval.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 6Denver measures noise at the neighbor’s property line. A commercial source may reach 55 dB(A) from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 50 dB(A) from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. at a residential receptor, 65 and 60 at a commercial one, 80 and 75 at an industrial one, and 75 and 70 at a public one.
MoreIf the ambient level already meets the limit, the ambient level becomes the standard. A venue that existed before the nearby homes gets higher limits, 65 by day and 60 by night. Permitted outdoor public events may reach 85 dB(A) from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on up to 8 days a year at one property.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 36Colorado bars sales for drinking on the premises from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. Denver’s tavern and hotel and restaurant pages both give service as seven days a week, 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.
MoreNo standing exception for New Year’s Eve or any other night turned up, and no Denver permit for later hours.
Source: Denver tavern pageHouse Bill 25-1237 would have let a city opt in to sales and open tabs until 2:30 a.m. and drinking until 3 a.m. It was postponed indefinitely in committee on 6 March 2025. No 2026 bill was checked directly.
MorePlan on 2 a.m. unless the law changes.
Source: Colorado General AssemblyA licensee may not offer entertainment at any time when alcohol sales are barred in the premises. The cabaret manager may also set earlier entertainment hours for a neighborhood if evidence shows it protects health, welfare or morals.
MoreThe music stops when the bar stops, and a neighborhood complaint can pull the hour earlier.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 6Denver licenses the room and the state licenses it too, and the City will not issue its license without proof of state approval. The steps run in this order, as the City lists them.
Email the planning records office to see if a use permit exists for the address, then apply to Zoning if it does not, each taking up to 10 business days. An acknowledgement lets the application start, but the license will not issue without the real permit.
Source: Denver new license pagePetitions of support from the Designated Area, neighbor affidavits, good neighbor agreements and letters from registered neighborhood organizations or business improvement districts go in with the application. The City examines them to decide whether a hearing is needed, and sending them up front usually speeds things up. The size of the area and the number of signatures weren’t stated.
Source: Denver new license pageSource: Denver policies pageAll officers, directors and anyone owning 10 percent or more are fingerprinted, which can take 10 to 15 days.
Source: Denver new license pageApply through the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection with documents as PDF or JPG. An invoice follows, and fees cannot be paid before it. The state fee is $1,100, or $1,200 for concurrent review, and the City’s is $1,000 plus other fees assigned at application.
Source: Denver new license pageThe City tries to review a complete application within seven business days. A notice of deficiency gives 14 days to correct, and an application not completed within 12 months is closed.
Source: Denver new license pagePost notice as the Department directs, and attend a public licensing hearing if the Director sets one. The applicant posts the hearing time and date at the premises for 30 days. The local authority weighs the neighborhood’s needs, the desires of adult residents and the number of outlets nearby.
Source: Denver new license pageSource: Denver policies pageSource: C.R.S. 44-3-312After the hearing is approved, zoning, building, the fire department, public health and licensing inspect.
Source: Denver new license pageThe state approves, then the City issues the license, which can be emailed.
Source: Denver new license pageIssued by the Denver Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection
General information, not legal advice. Laws and license conditions change and vary by venue. Confirm with the City’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection before acting on it.
How a table’s bill adds up once tax and a service charge are on it, and what guests pay at the door.
| Minimum spend | $1,000.00 |
|---|---|
| Service charge 20%, added by the venue | $200.00 |
| Denver sales tax 4% of both lines | $48.00 |
| Guest pays | $1,248.00 |
| Tip the guest chooses to add | No tax |
Denver’s code taxes food and drink served at restaurants, nightclubs, cabarets and similar places at 4%, under the rate for prepared food. Check the rate against the City’s own tax guide.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 53Cover charges, admission fees and mandatory service charges are part of the taxable price, whether called tips, gratuities or anything else. The 20% service charge is taxed with the table.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 53Only the city rate is shown. The state, RTD and other district rates weren’t confirmed, so check the combined rate before you print a receipt.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 53A retailer may include the tax in the price of a drink, but may not advertise that the tax is not included. Otherwise tax is shown as a separate item.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 53Since 1 January 2026 Colorado law has treated a food and beverage business as compliant when it discloses the amount of any mandatory service charge and how it is distributed.
Source: Colorado General AssemblyRough estimates for tickets and bottle-service tables, from public listings and venues’ own pages.
$10 to $30
Typically about $20
No Denver venue publishes a club night price on its own page, so this is generalised from the lowest club night tickets published in Nashville and Atlanta, above Chicago’s door cover. Headliner and holiday nights cost more.
$400 to $900
A typical table, about $500
No Denver venue publishes a table minimum on its own page, so this is generalised from the published and proposed minimums in Houston, Nashville and Atlanta. Before tax and a customary gratuity.
Figures are estimates from the sources and samples listed. They change often and may be wrong. Check with the venue or the relevant authority before relying on them. Venues and events named here aren’t affiliated with VenueStack and haven’t endorsed this guide.
Hourly wages for the roles a night runs on, and the rules on tips.
| Role | Range, low to high | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Bartenders$14.94 to $47.09 | $17.88 | |
| Servers$14.91 to $37.69 | $19.06 | |
| Hosts$14.81 to $28.06 | $17.47 | |
| Security guards$17.69 to $27.56 | $21.84 | |
| Cooks$17.47 to $23.98 | $21.33 | |
| Managers$32.70 to $54.46 | $38.22 |
Minimum wage $19.29 an hour, since 1 Jan 2026Source: City and County of Denver, Department of Finance
Bar: lowest to highest wage reported. Dot: median. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Denver’s minimum wage is $19.29 an hour for 2026, up from $18.81. Tipped food and beverage workers can be paid $16.27 an hour if they earn at least $3.02 an hour in actual tips, which is the tip credit. The rates adjust each January 1 with the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood CPI-W, up 2.56 percent for 2026.
Source: City and County of Denver, Department of FinanceA mandatory service charge and any cover charge are taxable in Denver. Tip pooling, whether a service charge is owed to staff as a tip, and card-fee deductions weren’t confirmed.
Source: D.R.M.C. Chapter 53
The nights that fill a room, or empty it, month by month.
The morning after New Year’s Eve, with a brunch and recovery crowd.
A long weekend.
Runs 16 days, so a long stretch of rodeo and ranch visitors and a hook for western nights.
Official siteA long weekend.
A bar night whatever day of the week it lands on.
Home game days bring crowds to LoDo and downtown.
A fixed-date promoter night and a busy one for bars.
A long weekend and the start of the summer visitor season.
Activities run through the month, and it is the biggest stretch for LGBTQ+ venues.
Official siteA holiday that can make a long weekend.
A fireworks night and a holiday weekend.
No city-wide dates
The last long weekend of summer.
Game-day crowds in LoDo and downtown bars.
A Friday and Saturday of beer visitors from out of town, in downtown bars and hotels.
Official siteGame nights downtown, and playoff dates are never known ahead.
A long weekend.
Costume nights, with the weekend before or after often as busy.
A federal holiday that can make a long weekend.
A long weekend for guests, so the night before is worth planning for.
A federal holiday and a quiet day for most rooms.
The biggest ticketed night of the year for most clubs.
Denver’s nightlife districts and the rooms each is known for.
A historic district where brick warehouses have become restaurants, rooftop bars and nightclubs.
The River North Art District, with jazz bars, brewpubs and galleries in old warehouses.
Taverns, vintage stores, galleries and music venues.
Victorian buildings holding boutiques, wine bars and restaurants.
Professional sports, live music venues and entertainment within walking distance.
Ranked by monthly Google searches in the United States for each venue’s name with the city, as Ahrefs estimates them. Few rooms publish a capacity, so this measures demand, not size. Only rooms that their own site or the tourism board shows open are listed.
| Rank | Venue | Nights | Music | Published price | Monthly searches |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Temple DenverClubDowntown DenverSource: Search estimatesSource: Visit Denver | Not listed | Not listed | Not listed | 3,900 |
| 2 | Grizzly RoseClubSource: Search estimatesSource: Visit Denver | Six nights a week | Country dancing and live music | Not listed | 2,500 |
| 3 | Charlie's DenverClubDowntown Denver · 900 E Colfax AveSource: Search estimatesSource: Charlie's Denver | Saturday events | Country bar and dance floor | Not listed | 1,500 |
| 4 | Club VinylClubSouth of Colfax Nightlife District · 1082 BroadwaySource: Search estimatesSource: Club Vinyl | Thursday to Saturday | Several floors with different DJs | Not listed | 1,100 |
| 5 | The Church NightclubClubSouth of Colfax Nightlife District · 1160 Lincoln StSource: Search estimatesSource: The Church Nightclub | Thursday to Saturday | Latin Saturdays across four rooms | $300 bottle service specials | 700 |
| 6 | Beacon DenverLoungeRiNo · 2854 Larimer StSource: Search estimatesSource: Beacon Denver | Thursday to Sunday | Live DJs | Not listed | 300 |
| 7 | The MillLoungeLoDo · 2041 Larimer StSource: Search estimatesSource: The Mill | Thursday to Saturday | Not listed | Not listed | 100 |
| 8 | Studio 1134ClubDowntown Denver · 1134 N BroadwaySource: Search estimatesSource: CoClubs | Fridays, 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. | Not listed | Not listed | 60 |
| 9 | Mockingbird DenverLoungeRiNo · 2737 Larimer StSource: Search estimatesSource: Mockingbird Denver | Wednesday to Sunday | Live DJs | Not listed | 40 |
Venues named here aren’t affiliated with VenueStack and haven’t endorsed this guide. Details come from each venue’s own pages and can change; a venue can ask us to correct or remove its entry.
Who lives in the city. These describe Denver and its metro area, not any venue’s guests.
Sell tickets, take table bookings with deposits, run the guest list and check guests in at the door, in one place. Built for clubs, lounges and bars.
Denver’s code sets 4% on food and drink served at restaurants, nightclubs, cabarets and similar places. Cover charges, admission fees and mandatory service charges count as part of the taxable price. The state, RTD and other district rates weren’t confirmed, so check the combined rate and the City’s own tax guide before you print a receipt.
Denver measures noise at the neighbor’s property line. A commercial source may reach 55 dB(A) from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 50 dB(A) from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. at a residential receptor, and 65 and 60 at a commercial one. A venue that existed before the nearby homes gets 65 by day and 60 by night. If the ambient level already meets the limit, it becomes the standard.
Service runs from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. seven days a week, and Colorado bars sales for drinking on the premises from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. Entertainment cannot go on while alcohol sales are barred. No separate clear-out time turned up.
No. A 2025 bill, House Bill 25-1237, would have let a city opt in to sales until 2:30 a.m. and drinking until 3 a.m., but it was postponed indefinitely in committee on 6 March 2025. No Denver permit for later hours turned up, and no standing exception for New Year’s Eve.
Check the zoning use permit, gather evidence of need and desire, fingerprint the owners, submit and pay, and go through city review, posting and any hearing, inspections, then state approval. The state fee is $1,100, or $1,200 for concurrent review, and the City’s is $1,000 plus other fees. The City tries to review a complete application within seven business days. No total processing time is published.
The application fees are $1,100 to the state, or $1,200 for concurrent review, and $1,000 to the City plus other fees assigned at application. A transfer of ownership is $1,100 at the state. The annual license fees for a tavern or hotel and restaurant license are not published on the pages read.
A tavern sells beer, wine and liquor to drink on the premises and needs a minimum of sandwiches and light snacks. A hotel and restaurant license needs a full kitchen, food service from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and at least 25% of gross annual income from food. A new tavern must sit 500 feet from schools and colleges, and Denver dropped that rule for hotel and restaurant licenses in 2012. Both run 7 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Yes, for live entertainment or dancing in a licensed room, with a few exemptions such as club and arts licenses. A dance cabaret, which covers a DJ night with patron dancing, is $1,000 to apply and $1,500 a year. A standard or acoustic cabaret is $500 to apply and $750 a year. The hearing is not less than 40 days after receipt, with posting for 30 days by the code and 20 by the City’s page.
Not after 10:30 p.m. with entertainment, or when patrons dance, unless a parent or guardian is with them. A cabaret with an underage patrons license may admit patrons 16 and over, and adult cabarets are 21 and over only. Alcohol cannot be sold to anyone under 21.
A person who acts as a security guard needs a license, at $25 to apply and $25 a year, with a 16-hour basic training course. Door attendants and ID checkers are exempt only if they carry no weapon, wear no security or police uniform, cannot start confrontations or take property, and cannot detain or eject anyone. A bouncer who can remove guests needs the license.
Denver’s minimum wage is $19.29 an hour for 2026. Tipped food and beverage workers can be paid $16.27 an hour if they earn at least $3.02 an hour in actual tips. In the Denver metro area, BLS data for May 2025 puts the median bartender wage at $17.88 an hour, before tips.
Yes. Denver’s code includes cover charges, admission fees and mandatory service charges in the taxable price, whether called tips, gratuities or anything else. Since 1 January 2026 Colorado law has also asked a business to disclose the amount of any mandatory service charge and how it is distributed.
VenueStack publishes this guide for general information. We take care to keep it accurate and list our sources and review dates, but we can’t guarantee it is complete, current or correct, and we aren’t responsible for decisions made on it. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice. Prices, minimums and wages are estimates from the samples described and don’t represent any particular venue. Venues, events and organisations named here aren’t affiliated with VenueStack and haven’t endorsed this guide.
Data gathered in October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
New YorkNew York, United States
Closing time, getting an SLA liquor license, temporary permits, the noise code, sales tax on service charges, door staff, wages and the year’s big nights.
Read the guide
MiamiFlorida, United States
The state closing default and city hours, quota and restaurant liquor licenses, City of Miami and Miami Beach business licenses, sales and resort tax, door licensing, wages and the year’s big nights.
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ChicagoIllinois, United States
Closing times and the Late Hour license, the City and state liquor licenses, the amusement license and tax, BASSET training, sales tax, the tipped wage and the year’s big nights.
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