Best Places88005, NM Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 88005, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
88005 ranks 21,727th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 88005
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
88005's strengths and weaknesses
Where 88005 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 170 pleasant days a year, better than 94% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 91% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Short commute20.0 minutes each way, better than 85% of zip codes
Where 88005 ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Household income$51,009 median, better than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 88005
A household needs to earn about $58,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 88005 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $51,009, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 88005's effective rate of 0.61%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 88005
88005 runs younger than the country, though it still carries a larger-than-average share of residents over 65, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 88005.
Who works in 88005, and how
Work in 88005 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 81%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 88005
88005 has more parkland per resident than 68% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 88005 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 88005, month by month
88005 sees roughly 170 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 58, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 58° | 43° | 31° |
| April | 81° | 65° | 48° |
| July | 98° | 83° | 70° |
| October | 80° | 64° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 88005
The nearest airport, El Paso International, is about 42 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Albuquerque International Sunport, about 189 miles away.
The best schools in and around 88005
Schools across 88005 average a C+, better than 60% of zip codes.
Top middle schools
- Gadsden MiddleF · 10% proficient
Top high schools
- Centennial High SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- Alma D'arte CharterB · 50% proficient
- Las Cruces HighB− · 45% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 88005 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
88005 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 88005 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 88005 suits
Common questions about living in 88005
Is 88005 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 88005 ranks 21,727th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, cell coverage, and biking, and lowest on tree cover and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 88005 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $227,666. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $51,009 median income, cost of living beats 17% of zip codes.
Is 88005 safe?
88005 is safer than 9% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $878 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 88005?
July highs average about 98 degrees, and January highs near 58 with lows near 31. That works out to about 170 pleasant days a year, more than 94% of zip codes.
Is 88005 good for families?
Schools beat 60% of zip codes, crime safety beats 9%, and childcare runs $742 a month.
Compare 88005 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 88005. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 88005 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
88005 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 88005: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 88005: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 88005: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 88005: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
88005 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.