Colorado Knife Laws
Colorado caps a concealed blade at three and a half inches, and that is the number to remember. Automatic knives have been legal since 2017, but the same three-and-a-half-inch concealed cap applies to them. Knowingly possessing a ballistic knife is a felony.
This is not legal advice, and we are not lawyers. It is a plain reading of published summaries and the statutes they cite, kept current on a fixed schedule. Local ordinances are frequently stricter than state law and are not all captured here. Check the statute, and check your city, before you carry.
Colorado knife law at a glance
| Concealed carry blade limit | Carrying a concealed knife with a blade over three and a half inches is a violation. |
|---|---|
| Automatic and switchblade knives | Legal since about 9 August 2017, with the concealed cap of three and a half inches still applying. |
| Knife types banned outright | Ballistic knives, a class 5 felony to knowingly possess. |
| Statewide preemption | Limited, and only to traveling within the state in private transport. |
| The statutes | C.R.S. 18-1-901, 18-12-101, 18-12-102, 18-12-105, 18-12-105.5 and 18-12-105.6 — read them |
Source last revised 13 December 2022
Next review 15 November 2026
How fresh this is, and how you can tell
Two dates sit above, and they are not the same thing. Checked by us is the last time a person went back to the sources and confirmed this page still matches them. Source last revised is when the American Knife and Tool Institute last updated its own Colorado page. A 2021 revision date is not automatically wrong — it usually means nothing has changed since — but it does mean nobody had looked recently, and that is exactly the gap this page exists to close.
Crossing the Colorado state line
Knife law stops at the border and the next state does not have to agree with this one. If you drive, these are the states you are most likely to carry into, and what changes when you do.
| State | Automatic knives | Concealed blade limit |
|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | Legal | No blade length governs, and open carry is unrestricted. The concealed deadly weapon rule carries exceptions from 21 for people without violent crime or drug convictions. |
| Nebraska | Legal | Three and a half inches. Any dagger, dirk, knife or stiletto with a blade over three and a half inches may not be carried concealed. |
| Kansas | Legal | No blade length governs. You may carry a knife concealed or not, at any length. |
| Oklahoma | Legal | No blade length governs and concealment is not an issue. |
| New Mexico | Restricted or banned | Concealed carry of a deadly weapon is barred outright, and a knife that can cause death or great bodily harm counts. No blade length governs. The exceptions are your own home or land, a private vehicle, and a state concealed handgun license. |
| Utah | Legal | No blade length governs and concealment is not an issue. |
A knife that is lawful in your pocket at home can be unlawful the moment you cross, and nobody stops you at the line to tell you. The map for all fifty states covers the rest.
Common questions about Colorado knife laws
What size knife is legal to carry in Colorado?
Carrying a concealed knife with a blade over three and a half inches is a violation.
Are switchblades legal in Colorado?
Legal since about 9 August 2017, with the concealed cap of three and a half inches still applying.
Which knives are banned outright in Colorado?
Ballistic knives, a class 5 felony to knowingly possess.
Does Colorado have knife preemption?
No. Colorado has no statewide preemption, so a city or county can be stricter than the state code, and several are. Check your local ordinance as well as the statute.
Can I keep a knife in my car in Colorado?
Where a state has a concealed carry limit, a knife in a glovebox or a door pocket is generally treated as concealed. Read the concealed line above and apply it to the vehicle. If that line says concealment is not the issue in this state, the vehicle is not the issue either — but where you drive to still is, because schools and courthouses are barred everywhere.
Where this comes from
Two independent sources, cross-checked against each other, and the statute text where they disagree. The automatic knife column is the American Knife and Tool Institute’s state automatics table, checked against Knife Rights’ own switchblade legality table and their legislative update log. Everything on a state page is quoted or closely tracked from that state’s AKTI page, and we print the date AKTI last revised it so you can see for yourself how fresh the underlying work is.
Where a source is older than a change we know about, we say so on the page rather than quietly leaving the old answer up. That is the whole reason this is checked every two months.
Elsewhere on Popular EDC
The knife law map for all fifty states, the knife steel comparison chart for choosing the blade itself, and every Popular EDC tool in one place.
Data updated September 2026. Colorado knife law checked against the published sources on 15 September 2026, and due for review again on 15 November 2026.