AreaProfile

Santa Fe, NM

Metro Area Profile

156,105 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Santa Fe, NM metropolitan area.

59
Area Score
Bottom 31% of 361 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity237th of 361 published metros49
GrowthTop 42% of 440 published metros56
Housing affordability380th of 441 published metros67
Climate287th of 441 published metros62
Physical resilience273rd of 441 published metros49
AccessTop 7% of 441 published metros99
Economic stability260th of 441 published metros52
The quick read

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most published city profiles, with rent taking 21% of median household income.

A major airport is 10 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

Its Area Score of 59 places Santa Fe in the top 69% of published metro profiles.

At a glance

Population
156,105
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$79,071
Top 19% nationally
Density
82/sq mi
1910.4 sq mi of land
Median age
48.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Santa Fe, NM
Nearest major airport
SAF
10 mi · Santa Fe Rgnl
Median home value
$446,300
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.3% is lower than 43% of the 361 measured US metros.

Employment fell 2.1% over the past year, to 69,827 employed residents.

46% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 96% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$2,820$79,071Top 19%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,456$52,207Top 5%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate12.0%Bottom 34%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute25.7 minTop 32%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher46.1%Top 4%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment69,827Bottom 25%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-2.6%Bottom 13%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-2.1%Bottom 16%June 2026
Labor force72,951Bottom 24%June 2026
Labor force participation57.3%Bottom 32%2024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$62,760Top 39%2025 OEWS
Median annual wage$48,710Top 42%2025 OEWS
Metro employment61,770Bottom 24%2025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.3%Top 32%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.3%Top 43%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032026/012026/067.52.7
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.3% in June 2026.
Largest occupations — Santa Fe, NM
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive2,410$50,170
Retail Salespersons2,320$35,960
Fast Food and Counter Workers1,950$30,810
Waiters and Waitresses1,680$46,640
General and Operations Managers1,630$106,770
Home Health and Personal Care Aides1,470$31,540

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $1,389 takes 21% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 5.6 times median household income here, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

Rent as a share of income
21.1%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
5.6×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$1,389
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$446,300
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income5.64Top 9%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate71.5%Top 39%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±13478,834Top 28%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$58$1,389Top 13%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$9,319$446,300Top 8%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income21.1%Top 19%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate10.2%Bottom 42%2024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
56/ 100
Top 42% of 440 published city profiles
Permitting is increasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

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 2% since 2020, reaching 157,765 in 2024.

At 3.6 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
555
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
3.6
Top 46% nationally
Year over year
+143%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
50.8%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024158k155k
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.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 89°F and January a low of 20°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 10.7 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station SANTA FE CO MUNI AP, 10.0 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND2.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation10.7"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low20°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high89°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing41°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

49 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are wildfire, earthquake and drought.

WildfireHigh
EarthquakeElevated
DroughtModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, lightning, inland flooding, hail, heat wave, cold wave, avalanche, strong wind, tornado, ice storm.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Taxes

AreaProfile does not yet publish tax comparisons. No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, methodology transparency and update cadence, and the product rule is to omit a dimension rather than estimate it. The Area Score is calculated without a tax component and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Nothing on AreaProfile is individualized tax advice.

Access

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 10 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Santa Fe RgnlSAF10 mi8,366 ft
Las Vegas MuniLVS47 mi8,199 ft
Albuquerque Intl SunportABQ49 mi13,793 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
59
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 29, 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 browse every source.

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