El Paso vs San Elizario

Which is the better fit for you?

El Paso, TX
62
Area Score
Top 38% nationally
San Elizario, TX
57
Area Score
Bottom 43% nationally

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El Paso receives the higher standardized Area Score. That reflects AreaProfile's weighting, not a judgment about which place is better to live in.

If you are moving

What the difference in prices, rent, homes and weather comes to, using the published figures for the two places. Add your income to see what it would take to keep pace.

Moving from El Paso to San Elizario

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Everyday prices
About the same
Regional price level 90.8 against 90.8 (US = 100). Both places sit in the same price region, so the index cannot tell them apart.
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
A new two-bedroom lease
The same
HUD benchmarks it at $1,191 in San Elizario against $1,191 in El Paso.
The median home
40% less
$110,400 in San Elizario against $184,500 in El Paso.
The weather you would swap
Similar winters
Normal January lows are 35°F in San Elizario against 35°F in El Paso; July highs are 96°F against 96°F (summers the same).

These are differences between published figures, not a forecast of your budget. Income and sales taxes, commuting, schools, insurance and the job you would actually get are not in them, and a price index describes a metropolitan area, so two places in one metro read the same. HUD’s rent is a benchmark for a new lease, not a listing.

Signals

El Paso
San Elizario
Opportunity: El Paso is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
56 · Top 49%
vs
43 · Bottom 22%
Growth
51 · Top 49%
vs
51 · Top 49%
Climate
64 · Bottom 32%
vs
64 · Bottom 32%
Physical resilience
66 · Top 42%
vs
66 · Top 41%
Housing affordability: San Elizario is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
69 · Top 42%
vs
87 · Top 4%
Schools: El Paso is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
65 · Top 30%
vs
35 · Bottom 31%
Access: El Paso is the more favorable of the two.
Access
93 · Top 48%
vs
82 · Bottom 24%
Economic stability: El Paso is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
39 · Bottom 19%
vs
29 · Bottom 9%

Measured values

MetricEl PasoSan ElizarioSource period
Population680,13010,1162024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income$59,745 — more favorable$49,9772024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income$29,956 — more favorable$16,7642024 ACS 5-Year
Population density2,628/sq mi1,466/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$184,500$110,4002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$1,073$917 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$1,191$1,191FY2026
Cost of living index90.890.82023
Homeownership rate60.8%68.0%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate4.6% — more favorable4.8%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)0.0%0.0%July 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher28.1% — more favorable5.7%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate18.3% ±0.7%26.3% ±9%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)1,6242,03212 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents2.4 — more favorable2.312 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)−11.8%−7.3% — more favorable12 months ending July 2026
Average July high96°F96°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low35°F35°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation8.8"8.8"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport16 mi — more favorable33 miNASR current cycle
Average commute24.9 min — more favorable34.4 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age34.531.12024 ACS 5-Year
Public schools16362024-25 school year
Students per teacher15.3 — more favorable18.42024-25 school year
Math proficiency58.3% — more favorable52.4%2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency47.2% — more favorable35.7%2018-19 school year
Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility74.1%90.8%2024-25 school year

A bolded value is the more favorable of the two where the metric has a clear direction. Metrics like population and density have no inherent better or worse and are shown unweighted.

One row above shows both figures with a ± margin and neither in bold. Those come from the American Community Survey, which samples rather than counts, and the gap between the two is smaller than the uncertainty on the figures themselves — so the survey did not find a difference to report, and calling either one the winner would be reading a result out of noise.

The number of units permitted is not marked because the larger place always permits more; the per-resident rate is the fair comparison.

Physical risk tradeoff

El Paso

Elevated or high exposure: hail.

San Elizario

Elevated or high exposure: hail.

Your best match

Weight what matters to you. Your preferences stay in this browser and never change either Area Score.

El Paso
—
El Paso: Your Score
62
Area Score
San Elizario
—
San Elizario: Your Score
57
Area Score

Select your priorities to see which of the two fits them better.

Full profiles: El Paso, TX · San Elizario, TX · How this is calculated: methodology