You’ve seen these lists before. Best places to live in New Mexico. Best suburbs in New Mexico. Best counties in New Mexico.
Etc., etc., etc.
But they all focus on major cities and towns in the Land of Enchantment, and no one pays attention to the little guy.
Well, that’s all about to change as we put together a list of the superb small towns in New Mexico based on numbers–not opinions or hearsay.
We’ll dive right into our methodology in the next section, but first, we thought you might want to know which places in New Mexico ranked the best based on Saturday Night Science.
$143,646 median income · 3.5% unemployment
$89,565 median income · 0.0% unemployment
$78,861 median income · 0.0% unemployment
$74,750 median income · 6.8% unemployment
$91,827 median income · 3.8% unemployment
$62,348 median income · 4.5% unemployment
$73,295 median income · 4.3% unemployment
$81,438 median income · 1.9% unemployment
$104,162 median income · 0.0% unemployment
$82,188 median income · 5.9% unemployment
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is New Mexico’s statewide median.
New Mexico statewide median: $64,059
New Mexico statewide median: $316,750
New Mexico statewide median: 6.0%
On the map
Where New Mexico’s best small towns are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Determined The Coolest Towns In New Mexico
We threw a lot of criteria at this report to get the best, most complete results of the best small towns in New Mexico possible.
Using the most recent data from the Census’s 2020-2024 American Community Survey, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Saturday Night Science, this is the criteria we used:
- Population Density (Higher is better)
- Lowest Unemployment Rates
- Housing costs (Higher is better. More demand.)
- Adjusted Median Income (Higher is better)
- Highly Educated Adults (Higher is better)
- Insurance Rates (Higher is better)
- Commute Times (Lower is better)
We looked at places with populations lower than 5,000 people and greater than 1,000, of which there were many – 87 to be exact.
We then ranked each place in each category with scores from 1 to 87, averaged them out, and the lowest scores went to our Best Small Towns in New Mexico. Top of that list — Sandia Heights.
This is our eleventh time ranking the best small places to live in New Mexico.
The full plate
Best Small Towns In New Mexico
Click any column to sort. Search by town name.
| Rank | Town | Population | Median Income | Median Home Value | Unemployment Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sandia Heights | 3,160 | $143,646 | $855,519 | 3.5% |
| 2 | White Sands | 1,609 | $89,565 | $0 | 0.0% |
| 3 | La Huerta | 1,288 | $78,861 | $440,591 | 0.0% |
| 4 | Mesilla | 1,717 | $74,750 | $384,799 | 6.8% |
| 5 | Sandia Knolls | 1,445 | $91,827 | $375,223 | 3.8% |
| 6 | Arroyo Seco | 2,112 | $62,348 | $628,574 | 4.5% |
| 7 | Paradise Hills | 4,591 | $73,295 | $325,049 | 4.3% |
| 8 | La Mesilla | 2,697 | $81,438 | $403,183 | 1.9% |
| 9 | La Villita | 1,534 | $104,162 | $323,644 | 0.0% |
| 10 | Bosque Farms | 4,071 | $82,188 | $429,396 | 5.9% |
| 11 | Peralta | 3,404 | $73,131 | $404,893 | 4.3% |
| 12 | El Cerro | 2,923 | $106,136 | $397,693 | 4.5% |
| 13 | Las Maravillas | 1,594 | $63,375 | $293,642 | 3.4% |
| 14 | High Rolls | 1,313 | $86,375 | $328,879 | 0.0% |
| 15 | La Cienega | 3,543 | $85,250 | $660,184 | 1.5% |
| 16 | Spencerville | 1,264 | $78,899 | $325,559 | 3.3% |
| 17 | San Ysidro | 2,118 | $89,473 | $428,079 | 15.8% |
| 18 | Los Chaves | 4,838 | $79,662 | $364,754 | 1.6% |
| 19 | Atoka | 1,347 | $83,704 | $148,353 | 0.0% |
| 20 | Pecos | 1,204 | $88,490 | $392,458 | 7.0% |
| 21 | El Rancho | 1,451 | $80,417 | $359,264 | 0.9% |
| 22 | Angel Fire | 1,111 | $107,554 | $501,804 | 1.2% |
| 23 | Cannon AFB | 2,405 | $63,000 | $0 | 18.9% |
| 24 | Elephant Butte | 1,790 | $53,482 | $233,337 | 5.3% |
| 25 | Tesuque | 1,079 | $55,865 | $1,084,305 | 19.5% |
| 26 | Cuartelez | 1,512 | $114,151 | $389,012 | 20.8% |
| 27 | Santa Rosa | 2,462 | $48,789 | $142,480 | 2.4% |
| 28 | Ponderosa Pine | 1,442 | $87,361 | $400,502 | 4.9% |
| 29 | Pojoaque | 2,327 | $74,028 | $211,422 | 7.0% |
| 30 | Springer | 1,017 | $50,345 | $111,073 | 1.9% |
| 31 | Capitan | 1,191 | $52,864 | $261,728 | 6.5% |
| 32 | Santa Ana Pueblo | 1,026 | $86,250 | $191,506 | 2.9% |
| 33 | Tome | 1,723 | $85,448 | $343,816 | 13.9% |
| 34 | Santa Clara | 1,809 | $57,898 | $91,900 | 6.2% |
| 35 | Holloman AFB | 4,433 | $52,465 | $0 | 11.9% |
| 36 | Jarales | 2,144 | $55,676 | $0 | 0.0% |
| 37 | Arenas Valley | 1,247 | $44,300 | $167,624 | 7.7% |
| 38 | Nambe | 2,035 | $59,375 | $384,926 | 9.3% |
| 39 | Questa | 2,466 | $47,308 | $298,110 | 3.0% |
| 40 | Hurley | 1,044 | $36,202 | $109,276 | 3.4% |
| 41 | Ruidoso Downs | 2,655 | $31,354 | $229,511 | 3.4% |
| 42 | Jemez Pueblo | 2,199 | $55,551 | $363,670 | 8.5% |
| 43 | Chimayo | 2,390 | $56,484 | $339,441 | 1.0% |
| 44 | Flora Vista | 2,770 | $44,352 | $303,288 | 0.0% |
| 45 | Boles Acres | 1,848 | $52,788 | $0 | 1.8% |
| 46 | Agua Fria | 2,898 | $65,101 | $345,221 | 7.9% |
| 47 | University Park | 2,782 | $30,156 | $0 | 14.0% |
| 48 | Tularosa | 2,597 | $52,375 | $184,071 | 20.2% |
| 49 | El Valle de Arroyo Seco | 1,293 | $67,826 | $0 | 0.0% |
| 50 | Eunice | 3,015 | $49,087 | $144,482 | 6.3% |
| 51 | Waterflow | 1,140 | $61,429 | $247,861 | 10.5% |
| 52 | Bayard | 2,057 | $34,477 | $104,463 | 12.8% |
| 53 | Mountainair | 1,178 | $43,021 | $173,788 | 10.4% |
| 54 | Algodones | 1,479 | $67,994 | $392,075 | 7.2% |
| 55 | Ohkay Owingeh | 1,194 | $47,067 | $0 | 2.6% |
| 56 | Dexter | 1,128 | $43,846 | $154,448 | 10.7% |
| 57 | West Hammond | 2,236 | $48,929 | $267,214 | 8.5% |
| 58 | La Union | 1,071 | $56,411 | $321,474 | 8.2% |
| 59 | Black Rock | 1,125 | $46,000 | $129,075 | 1.7% |
| 60 | Dixon | 1,623 | $54,231 | $501,362 | 10.4% |
| 61 | Rock Springs | 1,013 | $97,155 | $22,981 | 2.0% |
| 62 | Skyline-Ganipa | 1,226 | $56,992 | $107,115 | 5.3% |
| 63 | Loving | 1,357 | $43,884 | $219,082 | 16.2% |
| 64 | Dulce | 3,218 | $39,773 | $68,048 | 5.9% |
| 65 | Clayton | 2,753 | $34,500 | $109,570 | 9.4% |
| 66 | Lee Acres | 4,272 | $44,583 | $239,254 | 15.2% |
| 67 | Radium Springs | 1,908 | $43,836 | $173,759 | 8.7% |
| 68 | La Luz | 1,797 | $46,655 | $266,363 | 26.4% |
| 69 | La Plata | 2,233 | $57,071 | $314,746 | 8.5% |
| 70 | Santo Domingo Pueblo | 2,370 | $57,375 | $199,676 | 9.1% |
| 71 | Lordsburg | 2,057 | $36,607 | $110,052 | 4.6% |
| 72 | Hatch | 1,588 | $43,486 | $131,245 | 9.9% |
| 73 | Vado | 2,895 | $37,411 | $261,959 | 8.2% |
| 74 | McIntosh | 1,943 | $56,566 | $215,125 | 5.8% |
| 75 | Berino | 1,454 | $39,907 | $134,182 | 7.8% |
| 76 | Crownpoint | 2,882 | $51,011 | $78,007 | 6.9% |
| 77 | Milan | 2,327 | $36,133 | $96,391 | 3.7% |
| 78 | Columbus | 1,196 | $26,090 | $134,820 | 6.3% |
| 79 | Keeler Farm | 1,376 | $43,750 | $183,590 | 27.3% |
| 80 | Taos Pueblo | 1,129 | $39,375 | $474,423 | 21.7% |
| 81 | Meadow Lake | 4,259 | $43,649 | $99,455 | 4.8% |
| 82 | Moriarty | 2,102 | $31,650 | $232,493 | 11.6% |
| 83 | Estancia | 1,432 | $53,846 | $211,927 | 39.2% |
| 84 | Upper Fruitland | 1,457 | $49,453 | $110,052 | 12.1% |
| 85 | Navajo | 2,181 | $32,208 | $0 | 21.1% |
| 86 | Church Rock | 1,381 | $35,083 | $49,919 | 6.1% |
| 87 | Thoreau | 1,973 | $45,469 | $121,542 | 10.8% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024 via Saturday Night Science. 87 New Mexico towns between 1,000 and 5,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: Science Can Tackle Any Issue, Even Small Ones
We said it once, and we’ll say it again — this list: it’s just science. We did the research, crunched the numbers, and it turns out these small towns in New Mexico are the best in which to live.
And who can argue with that?
The best small towns in New Mexico are Sandia Heights, White Sands, La Huerta, Mesilla, Sandia Knolls, Arroyo Seco, Paradise Hills, La Mesilla, La Villita, and Bosque Farms.
