You’re probably never going to make enough money to live in the richest counties in New Mexico.
The median household income in Los Alamos County, the richest county in New Mexico is $147,139, significantly higher than the US median of $74,580, which means based purely on math most people never make enough to live there.
And that’s okay because it’s still fun to look at the people living in the lap of luxury.
So we used Saturday Night Science and the most recent Census to rank home prices and incomes for all 31 counties in the Land of Enchantment. Let’s star gaze together.
What is the richest county in New Mexico? The richest county in New Mexico is Los Alamos County. In contrast, the poorest county in the state is Quay County, according to the Census data.
$147,139 median income · $582,355 median home price
$79,071 median income · $551,954 median home price
$86,636 median income · $375,318 median home price
$69,473 median income · $347,857 median home price
$58,950 median income · $436,543 median home price
$78,426 median income · $247,119 median home price
$58,933 median income · $313,403 median home price
$57,155 median income · $342,347 median home price
$55,872 median income · $269,836 median home price
$53,303 median income · $345,944 median home price
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
On the map
Where New Mexico’s richest counties are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which New Mexico county is the richest?
To determine the richest county in New Mexico, we have to look at a handful of metrics that correlate with how rich people are. To do that, we made assumptions about what makes a county rich. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.
With that in mind, we went to the American Community Survey data and Zillow for the most recent reporting period for data on the following:
- Average Home Price
- Median Income
We then ranked each county in New Mexico for each of the criteria from one to 31, with one being the richest.
Taking the average rank across the two criteria, we created a Rich Score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Richest County In New Mexico.”
The result is some of the places with the most expensive real estate and highest earners in the Land of Enchantment.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our first time ranking the richest counties to live in New Mexico.
The full plate
Detailed List Of The Richest Counties In New Mexico
Click any column to sort. Search by county name.
| Rank | County | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Alamos County | 19,435 | $147,139 | $582,355 |
| 2 | Santa Fe County | 156,105 | $79,071 | $551,954 |
| 3 | Sandoval County | 153,604 | $86,636 | $375,318 |
| 4 | Bernalillo County | 673,930 | $69,473 | $347,857 |
| 4 | Taos County | 34,543 | $58,950 | $436,543 |
| 6 | Eddy County | 61,105 | $78,426 | $247,119 |
| 7 | Valencia County | 78,458 | $58,933 | $313,403 |
| 8 | Rio Arriba County | 40,070 | $57,155 | $342,347 |
| 9 | San Juan County | 120,942 | $55,872 | $269,836 |
| 9 | Lincoln County | 20,224 | $53,303 | $345,944 |
| 11 | Lea County | 73,733 | $68,015 | $191,098 |
| 11 | Torrance County | 15,490 | $57,842 | $227,153 |
| 13 | Otero County | 68,816 | $55,876 | $231,765 |
| 14 | Colfax County | 12,322 | $53,554 | $244,655 |
| 15 | San Miguel County | 26,850 | $49,431 | $257,118 |
| 16 | Curry County | 47,638 | $57,309 | $159,647 |
| 17 | Catron County | 3,743 | $49,864 | $230,424 |
| 18 | Mora County | 4,149 | $53,663 | $156,524 |
| 18 | Chaves County | 64,217 | $52,938 | $170,648 |
| 20 | McKinley County | 70,431 | $47,668 | $219,828 |
| 21 | Cibola County | 26,845 | $50,759 | $154,549 |
| 21 | Roosevelt County | 18,928 | $52,685 | $146,094 |
| 23 | Grant County | 27,775 | $44,958 | $188,064 |
| 24 | Socorro County | 16,200 | $36,570 | $195,298 |
| 25 | Sierra County | 11,500 | $41,600 | $171,957 |
| 26 | Hidalgo County | 4,041 | $48,882 | $100,641 |
| 27 | Union County | 4,013 | $46,694 | $121,431 |
| 27 | Luna County | 25,611 | $36,419 | $161,942 |
| 29 | Guadalupe County | 4,381 | $42,750 | $140,437 |
| 29 | Harding County | 741 | $48,553 | $89,369 |
| 31 | Quay County | 8,564 | $41,946 | $106,213 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS + Zillow via Saturday Night Science. All 31 New Mexico counties.
Summary
Summary: The Richest Counties In New Mexico For 2026
Living in New Mexico can vary from one part of the state to the next, with pretty extreme variance in home prices and incomes across counties.
The richest counties in New Mexico are Los Alamos County, Santa Fe County, Sandoval County, Bernalillo County, Taos County, Eddy County, Valencia County, Rio Arriba County, San Juan County, and Lincoln County.
Now you know the parts of the state where Goodwill will have the best goodies, and that’s what you came here to learn at the end of the day.
You are welcome.
