OBJECTIVES: Streptococcus pneumoniae is responsible for more than a million deaths globally each year, most of them in the developing world.  The burden of S pneumoniae infections is highest in children. Estimates in adult population are uncommon. Our objective was to determine the burden of disease, measured in disability adjusted life years (DALYs), associated with pneumococcus in adults (older than 15 years of age) in Colombia in 2008.  METHODS: Using different data sources (national mortality records, official registries, published literature and local epidemiological data) we estimated incidence, mortality and disability due to bacterial pneumonia, bacterial meningitis and bacteremia of any cause for year 2008, and the fraction of these that can be attributed to S. pneumoniae. We used Murray's standard methodology to estimate DALYs (including age-weighting and discounting at 3%). RESULTS: There were 6488, 1276 and 452 deaths due to pneumonia, bacteremia and meningitis, respectively. Incidence rates for these same 3 diseases (before adjusting for underreporting, that has been estimated in 65%) were 233,814; 999 and 960, respectively. A total of 63,463 DALYs are lost due to S. pneumoniae in Colombians age 15 or over (55,362 DALYs, 87%, due to premature death). Most of the burden (51,848 DALYs, 81.7%) is due to pneumonia, followed by meningitis (9,241 DALYs, 14.6%). For the age group 65 and over, after adjusting for population, the burden increases 7 fold. The 3 conditions, overall, represent 2,03 DALYs per 1000 Colombians in that age range. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the lower incidence of pneumococcal disease in adults, as compared with children, its burden is still significant, comparable, for example, to that of schizophrenia or epilepsy in Colombia. This study may provide a benchmark for future preventive interventions and for efficient resource allocation.