10 Fastest Growing Cities In New Mexico [2026]

Is being in an area of New Mexico that’s growing quickly a good thing or a bad thing?

Depends on who you ask.

Some want bigger, more exciting cities like Albuquerque and Las Cruces, while others want peace and quiet like in Tucumcari and Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, thank you very much.

But today, we’re going to put opinions aside and look at the cold, hard facts — since 2010, which cities in New Mexico have grown the fastest.

After getting knee-deep in the Census’s American Community Survey using Saturday Night Science, we emerged with this set of cities in the Land Of Enchantment that have people climbing over each other to get in.

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

The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In New Mexico For 2026

What’s the fastest growing city in New Mexico for 2026? Based on the most recent ACS data, Edgewood ranks as the fastest-growing city in New Mexico. If you happen to be a resident of Edgewood, you’re probably not surprised to find it on our list.

If you’re surprised — and you’re wondering why these places are a big deal — keep reading. We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 places in New Mexico grow like weeds.

For more New Mexico state reading:

The 10 Fastest Growing Cities In New Mexico For 2026

1. Edgewood

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 6,124
Population 2010: 3,664
Percent Growth 67.1%
Absolute Growth: 2,460
More on Edgewood: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

2. Los Lunas

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 18,618
Population 2010: 13,874
Percent Growth 34.2%
Absolute Growth: 4,744
More on Los Lunas: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

3. Rio Rancho

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 108,515
Population 2010: 81,056
Percent Growth 33.9%
Absolute Growth: 27,459
More on Rio Rancho: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

4. Santa Fe

Source: Wikipedia User Asaavedra32 | CC BY-SA 3.0

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 89,019
Population 2010: 67,588
Percent Growth 31.7%
Absolute Growth: 21,431
More on Santa Fe: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers

5. Sunland Park

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 17,463
Population 2010: 13,832
Percent Growth 26.3%
Absolute Growth: 3,631
More on Sunland Park: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

6. Carlsbad

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 31,746
Population 2010: 25,698
Percent Growth 23.5%
Absolute Growth: 6,048
More on Carlsbad: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

7. Las Cruces

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 114,197
Population 2010: 92,897
Percent Growth 22.9%
Absolute Growth: 21,300
More on Las Cruces: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

8. Hobbs

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 40,252
Population 2010: 32,940
Percent Growth 22.2%
Absolute Growth: 7,312
More on Hobbs: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers

9. Taos

Source: Wikipedia User Zeality | GFDL

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 6,458
Population 2010: 5,597
Percent Growth 15.4%
Absolute Growth: 861
More on Taos: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

10. Artesia

Source: Public domain

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 12,576
Population 2010: 11,061
Percent Growth 13.7%
Absolute Growth: 1,515
More on Artesia: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers

Methodology: How We Measured The Fastest Growing Cities In the Land Of Enchantment for 2026

To figure out which cities are growing the most, we used Saturday Night Science to look at the growth rates for cities since the beginning of the decade, according to the American Community Survey put out by the census every year. Specifically:

Current Population
Population in 2010
Growth rate from 2010 to Current (The latest available data which came out in Dec 2024)

We ranked all 33 New Mexico cities with a population over 5,000 people from highest growth rate to lowest.

The city with the highest growth rate during this time was crowned the fastest-growing city in the Land Of Enchantment.

And for those of you who are a little rusty with their statistics, you can calculate the growth rate by the following formula:

[Current Population – Population 2010] / [Population 2010]

The data has been updated for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the fastest growing cities in New Mexico.

Here’s a graph of the cities in New Mexico with the most significant percent increase in population:

Click to enlarge

Safest Places In New Mexico

Summary: These Places Grew Up So Fast In New Mexico, You Know?

So there you have it, the fastest growing cities in New Mexico are led by Edgewood which has been growing at a blistering pace this decade relative to other cities and towns around the state.

The fastest-growing cities in New Mexico are Edgewood, Los Lunas, Rio Rancho, Santa Fe, Sunland Park, Carlsbad, Las Cruces, Hobbs, Taos, and Artesia.

It’ll be interesting to see if these places can keep growing at the same rate over the next couple of years. We’ll be here to let you know!

These places have been growing (or shrinking) the slowest (fastest):

Raton
Aztec
Silver City

For more New Mexico reading, check out:

Fastest Growing Places In New Mexico For 2026

Rank	City	Population	Population 2010	Growth	Absolute Growth
1	Edgewood	6,124	3,664	67.1%	2,460
2	Los Lunas	18,618	13,874	34.2%	4,744
3	Rio Rancho	108,515	81,056	33.9%	27,459
4	Santa Fe	89,019	67,588	31.7%	21,431
5	Sunland Park	17,463	13,832	26.3%	3,631
6	Carlsbad	31,746	25,698	23.5%	6,048
7	Las Cruces	114,197	92,897	22.9%	21,300
8	Hobbs	40,252	32,940	22.2%	7,312
9	Taos	6,458	5,597	15.4%	861
10	Artesia	12,576	11,061	13.7%	1,515