Census-designated place · Otero County, New Mexico

Chaparral, New Mexico

Chaparral is a census-designated place in Otero County, New Mexico, part of the Alamogordo, NM metro area. It has 18,186 residents. Chaparral, New Mexico has a quality-of-life score of 6 out of 100 (very low), ranking #14,768 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within New Mexico it ranks #121 of 163 cities and towns. It ranks best on fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (low), comfortable days (high) and rent-burdened households (low). It ranks worst on child poverty rate (high), poor or fair health (high) and voter turnout (low).

6Very low

Quality-of-life score: #14,768 of 15,651 cities and towns
New Mexico: #121 of 163 in NM
Population: 18,186 (2020-2024)
Land area: 59 mi²
Density: 307.9 /mi²
FIPS code: 3514250

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety11#13,912/15,637
Economy2#15,290/15,631
Housing96#531/14,977
Health12#13,758/15,609
Healthcare8#14,464/15,650
Environment55#7,012/15,453
Education4#15,038/15,649
Infrastructure4#15,055/15,650
Community5#14,916/15,651
Leisure & amenities2#15,368/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Chaparral, New Mexico ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Otero County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low5.3 µg/m³
95/100New Mexico 5.9 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOtero County value
Comfortable days · high33.6%
92/100New Mexico 31.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationOtero County value
Rent-burdened households · low40.8%
91/100New Mexico 50.2%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070
Effective property tax rate · low0.54%
85/100New Mexico 0.63%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Home price to income ratio · low2.4×
82/100New Mexico 3.9×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Preventable hospital stays · low2,324 /100k
73/100New Mexico 2,042 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOtero County value

Weaknesses

Child poverty rate · high35.6%
3/100New Mexico 20.5%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001
Poor or fair health · high34.2%
3/100New Mexico 25.1%United States 19.9%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Voter turnout · low48.4%
3/100New Mexico 59.7%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionOtero County value
Suicide rate · high30.5 /100k
3/100New Mexico 22.3 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOtero County value
Food insecurity · high37.6%
3/100New Mexico 22.2%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Drug overdose deaths · high37.8 /100k
4/100New Mexico 46.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOtero County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
14,437 (2015-2019) → 18,186 (2020-2024)
+26%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
60.8% (2015-2019) → 90.0% (2020-2024)
+29 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$24,665 (2015-2019) → $46,017 (2020-2024)
+87%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Child poverty rateImproving
52.1% (2015-2019) → 35.6% (2020-2024)
−17 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateImproving
42.8% (2015-2019) → 27.4% (2020-2024)
−15 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
57.7% (2015-2019) → 68.5% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Chaparral, New Mexico improved on 5 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved5

Poverty−15 points42.8% → 27.4%
Household income+87%$24,665 → $46,017
Broadband+29 points60.8% → 90.0%
High school++11 points57.7% → 68.5%
Child poverty−17 points52.1% → 35.6%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Chaparral, New Mexico between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	34.0 min2015-2019	29.9 min2020-2024	−4.1 min	Within the margin of error	86%
Bachelor's degree or higher	11.3%2015-2019	10.5%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Within the margin of error	23%
Broadband subscriptions	60.8%2015-2019	90.0%2020-2024	+29 points	Improved	98%
Child poverty rate	52.1%2015-2019	35.6%2020-2024	−17 points	Improved	91%
Effective property tax rate	0.69%2015-2019	0.54%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	46%
High school diploma or higher	57.7%2015-2019	68.5%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	96%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	2.4×2020-2024	−0.8×	Within the margin of error	96%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5352015-2019	0.4382020-2024	−0.097	Within the margin of error	95%
Median household income	$24,6652015-2019	$46,0172020-2024	+87%	Improved	97%
Poverty rate	42.8%2015-2019	27.4%2020-2024	−15 points	Improved	98%
Rent as share of income	28.8%2015-2019	28.0%2020-2024	−0.8 points	Within the margin of error	61%
Rent-burdened households	46.8%2015-2019	40.8%2020-2024	−6 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Unemployment rate	11.2%2015-2019	6.3%2020-2024	−4.9 points	Within the margin of error	96%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	16.0%2015-2019	20.8%2020-2024	+4.8 points	Within the margin of error	11%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Chaparral, New Mexico five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Chaparral, New Mexico in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Chaparral, New Mexico itself moved +16.7 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

18,186 residents (±1,172)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

5,060 households (±431)

Chaparral, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Under $25k23%1,153
$25k–50k30%†1,518
$50k–75k19%963

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

5,060 households (±431)

Chaparral, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Own69%3,510
Rent31%1,550

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−8.4 points).

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

7,148 workers (±815)

Chaparral, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Drive alone84%5,994
Carpool8.5%†606
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Alamogordo, NM

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Otero County, the county holding most of Chaparral's residents.

Otero County has 988 employer establishments, 141 for every 10,000 residents (0.57× the US rate of 248; 0.67× New Mexico's), with 12,847 paid employees at an average annual pay of $41,595. The Census Bureau also counts 4,347 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 988; 4,347 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 141; US 248 · New Mexico 212
Paid employees: 12,847
Average annual pay: $41,595; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Otero County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	79	11.3	0.54×Fewer than typical	1,428	$40,878	175
Specialty trade contractors	75	10.7	0.69×Fewer than typical	551	$45,878	365
Restaurants and other eating places	74	10.6	0.58×Fewer than typical	1,567	$18,754	49
Lessors of real estate	48	6.9	0.56×Fewer than typical	117	$43,453	261
Religious organizations	42	6	1.08×About typical	216	$20,616	—
Automotive repair and maintenance	35	5	0.99×About typical	140	$40,186	100
Construction of buildings	35	5	0.66×Fewer than typical	221	$56,588	272
Building equipment contractors	34	4.9	0.81×About typical	334	$49,946	76
Limited-service restaurants	32	4.6	0.57×Fewer than typical	681	$18,664	24
Full-service restaurants	30	4.3	0.56×Fewer than typical	597	$23,206	13
Gasoline stations	25	3.6	1.10×About typical	344	$29,020	—
Offices of other health practitioners	22	3.1	0.52×Fewer than typical	396	$32,833	58

Rank places for an industry Open Otero County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 69,878 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $210K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Chaparral, New Mexico: $11.55 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $210K; +2,144% vs FY2025
Per resident: $11.55; US $1,994
Sole-source: 0.0%; US 30%
Single offer: 35%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Army$210K100%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

187.1KFY2017
3.4KFY2018
10.8KFY2019
414.4KFY2020
187.1KFY2021
48.3KFY2022
-3KFY2023
54.7KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416$201.2K96%
Basic chemical manufacturing · 3251$7,8333.7%
Remediation and other waste management services · 5629$9890.5%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Chaparral, New Mexico, so they do not add up across cities.

Chaparral, New Mexico's figures are part of those of Otero County, NM and Doña Ana County, NM ($600.2M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Chaparral is mostly in Otero County.

See federal money in Otero County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Chaparral, New Mexico is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Alamogordo, NM18

Other cities and towns in Otero County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/3514250

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends