Best PlacesSan Miguel County, NM Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in San Miguel County, 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.
San Miguel County ranks 2,680th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and crime is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in San Miguel County
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.
San Miguel County's strengths and weaknesses
Where San Miguel County ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 150 pleasant days a year, better than 92% of counties
- Heat safetyBetter than 88% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than 79% of counties
- TransitBetter than 78% of counties
- BikingBetter than 75% of counties
Where San Miguel County ranks low
- Crime safetyBetter than only 2% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 8% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 14% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 14% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in San Miguel County
A household needs to earn about $51,000 a year to comfortably buy the median San Miguel County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $54,766, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 San Miguel County's effective rate of 0.52%, 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 San Miguel County
San Miguel County runs older than the country, 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 San Miguel County.
Who works in San Miguel County, and how
Work in San Miguel County centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in San Miguel County
San Miguel County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties. That concentrates in some parts of San Miguel County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is San Miguel County growing, and who is moving in?
San Miguel County has lost about 7% of its population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Albuquerque, NM.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving San Miguel County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in San Miguel County, month by month
San Miguel County sees roughly 150 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 32° | 18° |
| April | 67° | 49° | 31° |
| July | 87° | 69° | 54° |
| October | 69° | 52° | 36° |
Flying in and out of San Miguel County
The nearest airport, Santa Fe Regional, is about 44 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Albuquerque International Sunport, about 82 miles away.
The best schools in and around San Miguel County
Schools across San Miguel County average a C−, better than 25% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Roy ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Mosquero ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Logan ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lazaro Larry Garcia MiddleD+ · 26% proficient
Top high schools
- Mandela International Magnet (mims)A · 75% proficient
- Roy HighA · 75% proficient
- Logan HighB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every San Miguel County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
San Miguel County 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 San Miguel County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who San Miguel County suits
Common questions about living in San Miguel County
Is San Miguel County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, San Miguel County ranks 2,680th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on the weather, heat safety, and low property taxes, and lowest on crime and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is San Miguel County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $203,744. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $54,766 median income, cost of living beats 14% of counties.
Is San Miguel County safe?
San Miguel County is safer than 2% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,114 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in San Miguel County?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 49 with lows near 18. That works out to about 150 pleasant days a year, more than 92% of counties.
Is San Miguel County good for families?
Schools beat 25% of counties, crime safety beats 2%, and childcare runs $660 a month.
Compare San Miguel County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to San Miguel County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in San Miguel County 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.
San Miguel County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for San Miguel County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in San Miguel County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of San Miguel County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in San Miguel County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
San Miguel County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.