The 10 Best Places To Retire In New Mexico For 2025


The best places to retire in New Mexico are Las Vegas and Raton for 2025 based on Saturday Night Science.

If you’re nearing the end of your career or have already retired and are looking for a change of scenery, consider the Land of Enchantment for your golden years.

There are plenty of things that make New Mexico a greater place for retirement. Whether you’re a connoisseur of eye-popping sunsets, a UFO enthusiast, or just a lover of chilies, New Mexico has loads to keep you satisfied during your work-free years.

Combine that with being among the states with the lowest rent in America, and you’ll have even more expendable cash on hand to enjoy all New Mexico has to offer.

Where should you lay down your briefcase in New Mexico? Well, if you’d like to live next door to George R.R. Martin and Val Kilmer, Los Alamos is your best bet. If you’ve always had “going to a rodeo” on your bucket list, Ruidoso is the place to be.

New Mexico will leave you enchanted no matter where you decide to retire, but these places will offer the absolute most to retirees.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Best Places To Retire In New Mexico For 2025

  1. Las Vegas
  2. Raton
  3. Corrales
  4. Anthony
  5. Truth or Consequences
  6. Belen
  7. Roswell
  8. Alamogordo
  9. Los Alamos
  10. Grants

It wasn’t easy to narrow down the best spots to retire in New Mexico. But by looking for the places with low cost of living and crime rates, combined with the best weather, activities, and access to the airport, we determined where folks can find the most fulfillment in their retirement.

What’s the best place to retire in New Mexico for 2025? According to the latest data, Las Vegas is the absolute best place in the state for retirees.

If you’re a little worried that New Mexico is too far from the family, be sure to look for overlap between this list and our list of best cities to raise a family. It could just be a win-win for every generation.

Why did Las Vegas take the top spot? And where are Albuquerque and Las Cruces?

For more New Mexico state reading:

The 10 Best Places To Retire In New Mexico For 2025

Las Vegas, NM

Source: Wikipedia User Asaavedra32 | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 13,120
Median Income: $42,732
Median Home Price: $143,900
Median Rent: $731
Distance to Closest Airport: 163 miles
More on Las Vegas: Data

Raton, NM

Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 6,013
Median Income: $52,007
Median Home Price: $148,200
Median Rent: $734
Distance to Closest Airport: 191 miles
More on Raton: Data

Corrales, NM

Source: Wikipedia User Chris English | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 8,557
Median Income: $114,207
Median Home Price: $549,700
Median Rent: $1,184
Distance to Closest Airport: 179 miles
More on Corrales: Data

4. Anthony

Anthony, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 8,701
Median Income: $33,141
Median Home Price: $110,800
Median Rent: $550
Distance to Closest Airport: 19 miles
More on Anthony:

Truth Or Consequences, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 6,026
Median Income: $29,142
Median Home Price: $107,500
Median Rent: $676
Distance to Closest Airport: 68 miles
More on Truth Or Consequences: Data

Belen, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 7,427
Median Income: $40,354
Median Home Price: $154,600
Median Rent: $877
Distance to Closest Airport: 158 miles
More on Belen: Data

Roswell, NM

Source: Wikipedia User Phil Campbell | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 47,823
Median Income: $50,294
Median Home Price: $139,200
Median Rent: $840
Distance to Closest Airport: 4 miles
More on Roswell: Data

Alamogordo, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 31,063
Median Income: $52,515
Median Home Price: $163,600
Median Rent: $886
Distance to Closest Airport: 69 miles
More on Alamogordo: Data

Los Alamos, NM

Source: Wikipedia User Daniel Schwen | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 13,471
Median Income: $136,502
Median Home Price: $458,200
Median Rent: $1,304
Distance to Closest Airport: 205 miles
More on Los Alamos: Data

Grants, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 9,106
Median Income: $49,286
Median Home Price: $123,600
Median Rent: $750
Distance to Closest Airport: 204 miles
More on Grants: Data

Methodology: How We Determined The Best Places To Retire In the Land Of Enchantment for 2025

To create our ranking of the best places in New Mexico to retire, we used Saturday Night Science. We analyzed Census data to find all places in the Land Of Enchantment — 417 cities and towns.

We then narrowed it down to places with at least 6,000 people that weren’t townships. This left us with 27 places from across the state.

For these 27, we looked at the following criteria taken from the Census, the FBI’s Crime Report, National Weather Service, and OpenFlights:

  • Low cost of living as measured by rent
  • Low crime
  • Things to do (Museums, Colleges, and Libraries in town)
  • Nice weather
  • Distance to the closest international airport
  • Other retirees (High median age)

We then ranked each of these places for each criterion from one to 27, with the lowest number being the best.

Finally, we took the average rank across these criteria. The place, in this case Las Vegas, with the lowest average rank, was crowned the best of the best, a place for you to start your second career.

The report has been updated for 2025. This list reflects our tenth time ranking the best places to retire in New Mexico.

Summary: Maybe You’re Not Ready To Retire In New Mexico Yet…

So there you have it, the best place to retire in New Mexico goes to Las Vegas.

The best places to retire in New Mexico are Las Vegas, Raton, Corrales, Anthony, Truth or Consequences, Belen, Roswell, Alamogordo, Los Alamos, and Grants.

If you’re not ready to hang up your office apparel yet, then these places might be up your alley:

  1. Farmington
  2. Hobbs
  3. Albuquerque

For more New Mexico reading, check out:

Best Places To Retire In New Mexico

Rank City Population Median Income Average Home Prices Median Rent
1 Las Vegas 13,120 $42,732 $143,900 $731
2 Raton 6,013 $52,007 $148,200 $734
3 Corrales 8,557 $114,207 $549,700 $1,184
4 Anthony 8,701 $33,141 $110,800 $550
5 Truth Or Consequences 6,026 $29,142 $107,500 $676
6 Belen 7,427 $40,354 $154,600 $877
7 Roswell 47,823 $50,294 $139,200 $840
8 Alamogordo 31,063 $52,515 $163,600 $886
9 Los Alamos 13,471 $136,502 $458,200 $1,304
10 Grants 9,106 $49,286 $123,600 $750
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.