Show Low, Arizona

Area Profile

12,102 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Show Low, in Navajo County.

46out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 10% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 14 sources
Opportunity4,064th of 4,199 cities measured25
SchoolsTop 31% of 4,162 cities measured64
GrowthTop 44% of 4,224 cities measured53
Housing affordability2,657th of 4,218 cities measured60
Climate2,687th of 4,225 cities measured66
Physical resilience3,553rd of 4,226 cities measured22
Access3,757th of 4,226 cities measured70
Economic stability3,227th of 4,226 cities measured42
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 7.7% and the Opportunity signal places Show Low in the bottom 3%. The unemployment rate is published for Navajo County, AZ, which contains Show Low, rather than for Show Low alone.

In the public schools here, 51% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 18.4 students for every teacher.

Residential permitting has slowed: 102 units authorized over the past twelve months, 34% below the prior year. That follows a longer stretch moving the other way, through 2025.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
12,102
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$60,368
Bottom 40% nationally
Density
185/sq mi
65.5 sq mi of land
Median age
45.6
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Arizona
Micro area
Nearest major airport
JTC
43 mi · Springerville Muni
Median home value
$299,600
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Navajo County, AZ, which contains Show Low, is 7.7% — higher than in all but 2% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across Navajo County, AZ, which contains Show Low, fell 3.2% over the past year, to 33,908 employed residents.

35% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 76% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsNavajo County, AZ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$60,42227th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftNavajo County, AZ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$55,31415th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$7,3222024 ACS 5-Year$60,368Bottom 40%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$3,8062024 ACS 5-Year$35,823Top 44%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year12.3%Bottom 44%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year21.3 minTop 23%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year34.9%Top 24%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year75.6%45th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentNavajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 202633,908Bottom 38%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Navajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 2026−2.1%Bottom 23%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Navajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 2026−3.2%Bottom 6%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceNavajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 202636,75039th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year69.1%Bottom 25%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Navajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 2026+0.5%Bottom 19%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateNavajo County, AZ’s figureJuly 20267.7%Bottom 2%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year8.4%54th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202463k54k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $60,368 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for Navajo County, AZ, which contains this city.

51% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 55% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 18.4 students for every full-time teacher across 6 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
13
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
18.4
across 6 of them
Math proficiency
51.3%
Top 27% in Arizona
Reading proficiency
54.9%
Top 24% in Arizona
The 12 largest of 13 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Show Low High SchoolShow Low Unified District (4393)85822.065%75%
Show Low Junior High SchoolShow Low Unified District (4393)52718.229%35%
Nikolaus Homestead Elementary SchoolShow Low Unified District (4393)38319.150%47%
Whipple Ranch Elementary SchoolShow Low Unified District (4393)35114.6——
Linden Elementary SchoolShow Low Unified District (4393)20814.972%62%
Sequoia Village School · charterEdkey Inc. - Sequoia Village School (79211)17317.332%27%
White Mountain InstituteShow Low Unified District (4393)48———
NAVIT - Northland Pioneer College WMCNorthern Arizona Vocational Institute of Technolog (78786)16———
Show Low PreschoolShow Low Unified District (4393)14———
NAVIT - Show Low High SchoolNorthern Arizona Vocational Institute of Technolog (78786)3—47%52%
AAEC Show Low · charterArizona Agribusiness & Equine Center Inc. (91131)0———
Sequoia Village High School · charterEdkey Inc. - Sequoia Village School (79211)0———

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Arizona’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of Arizona is up 46% over five years, and up 2.0% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,391 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.46% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,309, some 18% above the $1,110 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,309 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $52,400 a year, about 87% of the median household income here of $60,368.

The typical renter household here spends 29% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,110 a month.

A median home at $299,600 costs 4.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $71,375, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Rent as a share of income
29.4%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
4.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,309
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,110
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$299,600
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Show Low’s median household income of $60,368, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of Arizona’s figure2026 Q2+2.0%34th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Arizona’s figure2026 Q2+46.0%66th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of Arizona’s figure2026 Q2+124.3%92nd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.82024 ACS 5-Year4.2Bottom 15%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year65.5%29th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4102024 ACS 5-Year7,76692nd percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,026Top 25%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,622Top 24%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,309Top 28%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$892024 ACS 5-Year$1,110Bottom 38%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$31,4312024 ACS 5-Year$299,60072nd percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1212024 ACS 5-Year$1,39138th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$10,9482024 ACS 5-Year$71,375Bottom 39%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.06%2024 ACS 5-Year0.46%9th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±7%2024 ACS 5-Year29.4%Bottom 44%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±3702024 ACS 5-Year2,29699th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year29.6%95th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year4.8%37th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3692024 ACS 5-Year2,66698th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

53/ 100
Top 44% of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been rising for the last 2 years of a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 5% since 2020, reaching 12,366 in 2024.

Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 12,366 residents in 2024, up 0.8% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 102 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes.

Federal tax returns show Navajo County, which contains Show Low, gained about 0.9% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $60,422, above the $55,314 of households that moved out.

At 8.4 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
102
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
8.4
Top 15% nationally
Year over year
−34%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202412k12k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 4 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
+0.9%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
36%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$60,422
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$55,314
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Maricopa County, AZ 1,980 people · 35% of arrivals
  2. Coconino County, AZ 404 people · 7.1% of arrivals
  3. Apache County, AZ 372 people · 6.5% of arrivals
  4. Pinal County, AZ 309 people · 5.4% of arrivals
  5. Pima County, AZ 261 people · 4.6% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Maricopa County, AZ 1,564 people · 31% of departures
  2. Coconino County, AZ 369 people · 7.4% of departures
  3. Apache County, AZ 339 people · 6.8% of departures
  4. Pinal County, AZ 245 people · 4.9% of departures
  5. Pima County, AZ 235 people · 4.7% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Navajo County, AZ. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

202020212022202320242025200100
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−19%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 85°F and January a low of 24°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 15.7 inches, including 19.4 inches of snow.

Air quality measures a median index of 13, in the Good band, and no day in the year passed 100.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station SHOW LOW AP, 1.8 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND3.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year222024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals15.7"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals19.4"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals24°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals85°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year02024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year132024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals38°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
13
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
22
90th percentile index
Days above 100
0
unhealthy for sensitive groups

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

22 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, wildfire and lightning, with inland flooding alone responsible for 51% of it. Lightning is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

WildfireHigh
Inland floodingModerate
EarthquakeModerate
AvalancheModerate

Low or minimal exposure: lightning, winter weather, landslide, cold wave, ice storm, heat wave, volcanic activity, drought, strong wind, hail, tornado, hurricane, tsunami, coastal flooding.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
503
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
2,699
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Show Low's police department reported 503 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 2,699.

Navajo County records 15.6 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, higher than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 30.2 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 41.2 per 100,000 residents in Navajo County.

Homicide
15.6
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
30.2
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
41.2
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
39.4
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Show Low’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Show Low (Navajo County) rather than Show Low itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

1 major airport lies within 100 miles, the nearest Springerville Muni at 43 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year90.5%Top 47%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle43 miBottom 17%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle1Bottom 1%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year8.4%Bottom 45%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Springerville MuniJTC43 mi8,422 ft
Flagstaff PulliamFLG111 mi8,800 ft
Mesa GatewayIWA114 mi10,401 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
46
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in Show Low

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Show Low with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Show Low closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
8590119,533$59,779$280,300—