Colorado’s Black License Plates Are Outselling Every Other Plate

When it comes to license plates in the state of Colorado, you have a lot to choose from. There are more than 200 different options that allow drivers to show off their support for causes, teams, and Colorado pride.

For me, there are only a handful of license plates I would gladly pay a little more to have. Those plates would be for the Denver Broncos, Pueblo Chile, Stegosaurus, or the highly popular blackout license plates.

Why Colorado’s Black License Plates Are Everywhere

Chances are, you probably see plenty of those black license plates all over the road, and for good reason. According to 9News, these license plates have gained massive popularity since their reintroduction in January 2023.

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The design for the black Colorado license plate is a replica of what you might have seen on the roads back in 1945. Other historic plates include blue from 1914 and red from 1915. However, no historic plate has come close to matching the demand for the black plate since its return.

When a resident chooses a specialty license plate, such as the black plate, they pay an additional $25 per year to have that option. That fee on the black Colorado license plate goes to help Colorado’s disability services programs.

Before the reintroduction of the black license plate, the revenue generated for the program was about $100,000 in the first decade.

The Eye-Opening Revenue Numbers

In 2025 alone, the black Colorado license plate generated $12.15 million, which is 125 times more than the previous ten years combined. Colorado's black license plate is now more popular than all of the specialty plates combined as of December 31, 2025.

It might surprise you to know that there are a total of 486,075 black license plates issued in the state of Colorado. Coming in at a distant second place was the 150th anniversary plate (under 13) with only 68,547. The Columbine license plate was third with 65,547 issued plates.