myjobcontacts › States › Colorado
How many job searches do you need for unemployment in Colorado?
Short answer: Colorado's rules do not set a fixed number. You must do work search activities every week you request payment, and CDLE recommends at least 5 a week. You report your activities in MyUI+ each time you request payment.
Each week
No set number
The week
Sunday through Saturday
Request payment
Request payment every week, starting on Sunday, for the week that just ended.
Official log form
Keep records
Keep your work search records for 2 years from the start of your claim.
Special cases
- In approved training. You may qualify for fewer required activities. Ask your local workforce center.
- Few jobs in your area (division decision). If CDLE decides a search would be useless in your labor market, registering for work as directed counts as your search.
What counts as a work search in Colorado
- Applying for a job you are reasonably qualified for
- Interviewing for a job
- Taking an exam that is part of a job application
- Contacting an employer you think may be hiring to ask about openings
- Getting a job referral from a workforce center
- Adding your resume to an online job board
- Using online career tools (with proof)
- Using reemployment services at a workforce center
- Job-related classes or skills training
- Creating a profile on a professional networking site
- Going to networking events in your field
- Reporting on time to your union hiring hall, if you are a registered member
More on this in what counts as a work search contact.
How to report your job contacts
Each week when you request payment in MyUI+, you report the work search activities you did that week. You must also keep your own record with proof, such as employer name, address, phone or email, the person you talked to, how you applied, and confirmation emails. CDLE can ask for it in an audit.
When: Request payment every week, starting on Sunday, for the week that just ended. Your first request is on the Sunday after the first week of your claim.
Where: MyUI+.
When the search starts: Every week you request payment, starting with your first week.
Keep a work search log
Keep your work search records for 2 years from the start of your claim. CDLE can audit your claim any time in those 2 years. CDLE’s form is the Work Search Log.
The free myjobcontacts app keeps the same details. Prefer paper? Use the free printable work search log.
Who doesn’t have to search
- You are job attached: you expect to go back to your most recent employer within 16 weeks (your search may be waived)
- You are union attached: your union must find you work within 16 weeks (your search may be waived)
- Federal workers furloughed during a government shutdown count as job attached
Union members: If you are union attached (your union must find you work within 16 weeks), your work search may be waived. If it is not waived, timely reporting to your union hiring hall counts as a work search activity.
See work search exemptions for how these work in other states.
Reviews, audits and RESEA
CDLE regularly audits claims. Your reported activities can be checked any time up to 2 years from the start of your claim, and you must show proof. The first time you fall short, CDLE may send a warning letter. After a warning, a second failure means benefits are denied for those weeks.
RESEA: If you get a notice to take part in RESEA, you must schedule your RESEA meeting in Connecting Colorado.
What to expect: unemployment work search audits.
If you miss your number
If you do not do work search activities or cannot prove them, you can be denied benefits for those weeks and have to pay back money already paid. A past warning letter can be used in deciding fraud penalties.
Sign up with the job bank
Register as a job seeker in Connecting Colorado within 7 calendar days of filing your claim, using your Social Security number. You are not eligible for benefits until you register. Connecting Colorado.
Keep every job contact in one place
myjobcontacts is a free work search log. Pick your state and it shows how many contacts you still need this week, reminds you before you request payment, and prints a clean log if CDLE ever asks for it. No sign-up. Your list stays on your phone.
Start my free logQuestions people in Colorado ask
How many job searches are required for unemployment in Colorado?
Colorado's rules do not set a fixed number. You must do work search activities every week you request payment, and CDLE recommends at least 5 a week. You report your activities in MyUI+ each time you request payment. Some people have a different number: In approved training; Few jobs in your area (division decision).
What counts as a work search in Colorado?
Applying for a job you are reasonably qualified for; Interviewing for a job; Taking an exam that is part of a job application; Contacting an employer you think may be hiring to ask about openings, and 8 more on the list above. Check your notice for anything your state added for you.
Do I have to keep a work search log in Colorado?
Each week when you request payment in MyUI+, you report the work search activities you did that week. You must also keep your own record with proof, such as employer name, address, phone or email, the person you talked to, how you applied, and confirmation emails. CDLE can ask for it in an audit. Keep your work search records for 2 years from the start of your claim. CDLE can audit your claim any time in those 2 years.
What happens if I don’t do enough job searches in Colorado?
If you do not do work search activities or cannot prove them, you can be denied benefits for those weeks and have to pay back money already paid. A past warning letter can be used in deciding fraud penalties.
Who doesn’t have to look for work in Colorado?
You are job attached: you expect to go back to your most recent employer within 16 weeks (your search may be waived). You are union attached: your union must find you work within 16 weeks (your search may be waived). Federal workers furloughed during a government shutdown count as job attached. Your notice will say if this applies to you.
Does Colorado check or audit work search records?
CDLE regularly audits claims. Your reported activities can be checked any time up to 2 years from the start of your claim, and you must show proof. The first time you fall short, CDLE may send a warning letter. After a warning, a second failure means benefits are denied for those weeks.
Checked against CDLE’s own pages and rules on November 6, 2026. We could not confirm the official log form, the job bank link, the weekly number on an official page, so check your notice for those.
Sources
Work search rules in every state
myjobcontacts is not a government website and this is not legal advice. Rules change, and your own claim notice or letter is what counts. If something here doesn’t match what your state told you, follow your state.