Hormigueros vs Mayagüez

Which is the better fit for you?

Hormigueros, PR
46
Area Score
Bottom 11% nationally
Mayagüez, PR
43
Area Score
Bottom 6% nationally

Want a third or fourth place beside these? Open them in the shortlist and add more.

Hormigueros 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 Hormigueros to Mayagüez

It stays in this browser and is never sent anywhere.

Everyday prices
The Bureau of Economic Analysis publishes no regional price index for Hormigueros or Mayagüez, so nothing here is estimated in its place.
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Needs a price index for both places.
A new two-bedroom lease
The same
HUD benchmarks it at $536 in Mayagüez against $536 in Hormigueros.
The median home
2% less
$114,000 in Mayagüez against $116,700 in Hormigueros.
The weather you would swap
Similar winters
Normal January lows are 68°F in Mayagüez against 68°F in Hormigueros; July highs are 90°F against 90°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

Hormigueros
Mayagüez
Opportunity: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
46 · Bottom 28%
vs
45 · Bottom 25%
Growth: Mayagüez is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
41 · Bottom 30%
vs
43 · Bottom 34%
Climate
79 · Top 19%
vs
79 · Top 19%
Physical resilience: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Physical resilience
12 · Bottom 8%
vs
9 · Bottom 4%
Housing affordability: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
65 · Bottom 45%
vs
49 · Bottom 19%
Schools: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
44 · Bottom 43%
vs
40 · Bottom 37%
Access: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Access
77 · Bottom 18%
vs
75 · Bottom 16%
Economic stability: Hormigueros is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
14 · Bottom 1%
vs
9 · Bottom 1%

Measured values

MetricHormiguerosMayagüezSource period
Population10,97558,9772024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income$27,399 — more favorable$17,4102024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income$16,888 — more favorable$14,3962024 ACS 5-Year
Population density2,483/sq mi2,811/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$116,700$114,0002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent$555$482 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$536$536FY2026
Homeownership rate70.1%45.3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate7.4% — more favorable10.7%July 2026
Employment change (year over year)+5.0% — more favorable+4.1%July 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher — the two are too close to separate27.0% ±3%28.3% ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate36.5% — more favorable51.9%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)6202025 calendar year
Permits per 1,000 residents0.4 — more favorable0.32025 calendar year
Permit change (year over year)−33.3%+17.6%2025 calendar year
Average July high90°F90°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low68°F68°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation51.3"51.3"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport38 mi — more favorable40 miNASR current cycle
Average commute — the two are too close to separate22.8 min ±2.1 min22.8 min ±1.2 min2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age51.941.22024 ACS 5-Year
Public schools4162024-25 school year
Students per teacher12.69.4 — more favorable2024-25 school year
Math proficiency25.1%27.7% — more favorable2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency45.2% — more favorable40.6%2018-19 school year
Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility88.1%87.6%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.

2 rows above show 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. The year-over-year change is not marked either: a percentage on fewer than 300 units swings on a handful of permits.

Physical risk tradeoff

Hormigueros

Elevated or high exposure: hurricane, landslide.

Mayagüez

Elevated or high exposure: hurricane, landslide.

Your best match

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

Hormigueros
—
Hormigueros: Your Score
46
Area Score
Mayagüez
—
Mayagüez: Your Score
43
Area Score

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

Full profiles: Hormigueros, PR · Mayagüez, PR · How this is calculated: methodology