The 10 New Mexico Cities With The Largest Native American Population For 2023


We used data and science to determine the cities in New Mexico with the largest Native American population.

Editor’s Note: We updated this article for 2023. This is our tenth time ranking the cities in New Mexico with the largest Native American population.

There are three major races in America that come to most of our minds right away:

  1. White
  2. Hispanic
  3. African American

But those are only the major races, there's a whole bunch of other races people are interested in knowing about.

And today, we are going to look at the percent of the population in New Mexico that are Native American.

Native Americans are not a major portion of the current American Population, but they are still very important.

There are now over 2 million people who identify as Native American living in America, making up .65% of the total population. According to the most recent American Community Survey, the Native American population in New Mexico is 180,121 - at 8.5% of the total population of New Mexico.

So, what how does the Native American population stratify across New Mexico? Which cities and towns in New Mexico have seen the greatest increase in their Native American population?

The 10 Cities In New Mexico With The Largest Native American Population For 2023

  1. Gallup
  2. Farmington
  3. Bloomfield
  4. Grants
  5. Aztec
  6. Socorro
  7. Truth or Consequences
  8. Bernalillo
  9. Albuquerque
  10. Taos

Which city in New Mexico had the largest Native American population?

Gallup took the number one over all spot for the largest Native American population in New Mexico for 2023. 44.35% of Gallup identify as Native American.

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town ranked.

To see where New Mexico ranked as a state on diversity, we have a ranking of the most diverse states in America.

And if you already knew these places were Native American, check out the best places to live in New Mexico or the most diverse places in New Mexico.

For more New Mexico reading, check out:

Cities In New Mexico With The Largest Native American Population For 2023

Gallup, NM

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 21,901
% Native American: 44.35%
# Of Native American Residents: 9,713
Percent Change Since 2010: 21.67%
More on Gallup: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Farmington, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 46,696
% Native American: 25.25%
# Of Native American Residents: 11,793
Percent Change Since 2010: 21.82%
More on Farmington: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Bloomfield, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 7,514
% Native American: 20.11%
# Of Native American Residents: 1,511
Percent Change Since 2010: 12.76%
More on Bloomfield: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Grants, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 9,208
% Native American: 14.43%
# Of Native American Residents: 1,329
Percent Change Since 2010: 10.38%
More on Grants: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Aztec, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 6,283
% Native American: 12.35%
# Of Native American Residents: 776
Percent Change Since 2010: -28.01%
More on Aztec: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Socorro, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 8,553
% Native American: 4.98%
# Of Native American Residents: 426
Percent Change Since 2010: 41.53%
More on Socorro: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Truth Or Consequences, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 6,078
% Native American: 4.51%
# Of Native American Residents: 274
Percent Change Since 2010: 522.73%
More on Truth Or Consequences: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Bernalillo, NM

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 9,049
% Native American: 3.91%
# Of Native American Residents: 354
Percent Change Since 2010: -45.87%
More on Bernalillo: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Albuquerque, NM

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 562,336
% Native American: 3.82%
# Of Native American Residents: 21,503
Percent Change Since 2010: 2.97%
More on Albuquerque: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Taos, NM

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 6,524
% Native American: 3.22%
# Of Native American Residents: 210
Percent Change Since 2010: -13.22%
More on Taos: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Methodology: How We Determined The Cities In New Mexico With The Largest Native American Population For 2023

We still believe in the accuracy of data -- especially from the census. So that's where we went to get the breakdown of race across New Mexico.

That lead us to the Census's most recently available data, the 2017-2021 American Community Survey data from the US Census.

Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:

  • Hispanic or Latino
  • White alone*
  • Black or African American alone*
  • American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
  • Asian alone*
  • Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
  • Some other race alone*
  • Two or more races*
* Not Hispanic or latino

Our particular column of interest here was the number of people who identified as American Indian and Alaska Native alone.

We limited our analysis to places with a population greater than 5,000 people. That left us with 32 cities.

We then calculated the percent of residents that are American Indian and Alaska Native. The percentages ranked from 44.35% to 0.0%.

Finally, we ranked each city based on the percent of American Indian and Alaska Native population with a higher score being more American Indian and Alaska Native than a lower score. Gallup took the distinction of being the most American Indian and Alaska Native, while Los Ranchos De Albuquerque was the least Native American city.

Read on for more information on how the cities in New Mexico ranked by population of American Indian and Alaska Native residents or, for a more general take on diversity in America, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.

Summary: Native American Populations Across New Mexico

If you're looking for a breakdown of Native American populations across New Mexico according to the most recent data, this is an accurate list.

If you're curious enough, here are the least Native American places in New Mexico:

  1. Los Ranchos De Albuquerque
  2. Ruidoso
  3. Lovington

For more New Mexico reading, check out:

What Are The Most Native American Places In New Mexico?

Rank City % Native American Population
1 Gallup 44.35% 21,901
2 Farmington 25.25% 46,696
3 Bloomfield 20.11% 7,514
4 Grants 14.43% 9,208
5 Aztec 12.35% 6,283
6 Socorro 4.98% 8,553
7 Truth Or Consequences 4.51% 6,078
8 Bernalillo 3.91% 9,049
9 Albuquerque 3.82% 562,336
10 Taos 3.22% 6,524
11 Los Lunas 3.17% 17,072
12 Corrales 3.04% 8,488
13 Artesia 2.77% 12,637
14 Rio Rancho 2.22% 102,403
15 Las Vegas 1.63% 13,247
16 Raton 1.56% 6,082
17 Deming 1.13% 14,730
18 Las Cruces 1.09% 109,934
19 Santa Fe 1.07% 86,935
20 Tucumcari 1.03% 5,221
21 Hobbs 0.87% 39,476
22 Alamogordo 0.74% 31,201
23 Roswell 0.71% 48,347
24 Carlsbad 0.69% 31,525
25 Belen 0.53% 7,374
26 Clovis 0.48% 38,505
27 Portales 0.26% 12,151
28 Sunland Park 0.15% 16,488
29 Silver City 0.14% 9,694
30 Lovington 0.1% 11,505
31 Ruidoso 0.07% 7,636
32 Los Ranchos De Albuquerque 0.0% 5,904

How Is The Area In ?

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.