Census-designated place · Santa Fe County, New Mexico

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico

El Valle de Arroyo Seco is a census-designated place in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, part of the Santa Fe, NM metro area. It has 1,293 residents. El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico has a quality-of-life score of 52 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #7,505 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within New Mexico it ranks #18 of 163 cities and towns. It ranks best on fine particulate matter (PM2.5) (low), rent as share of income (low) and preventable hospital stays (low). It ranks worst on broadband subscriptions (low), drug overdose deaths (high) and primary care shortage (high).

52Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #7,505 of 15,651 cities and towns
New Mexico: #18 of 163 in NM
Population: 1,293 (2020-2024)
Land area: 5 mi²
Density: 252.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 3524347

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety17#12,974/15,637
Economy56#6,856/15,631
Housing87#1,956/14,977
Health63#5,729/15,609
Healthcare53#7,429/15,650
Environment89#1,624/15,453
Education16#13,198/15,649
Infrastructure15#13,278/15,650
Community46#8,527/15,651
Leisure & amenities79#3,257/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Santa Fe 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) · low4.2 µg/m³
99/100New Mexico 5.9 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencySanta Fe County value
Rent as share of income · low10.4%
99/100New Mexico 30.1%United States 30.6%2019-2023U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Preventable hospital stays · low1,349 /100k
98/100New Mexico 2,042 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanta Fe County value
Unemployment rate · low0.0%
98/100New Mexico 4.2%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Mental health providers · high830 /100k
98/100New Mexico 480 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanta Fe County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high10.7 /10k
96/100New Mexico 4.0 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSanta Fe County value

Weaknesses

Broadband subscriptions · low70.1%
1/100New Mexico 86.5%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Drug overdose deaths · high67.3 /100k
1/100New Mexico 46.4 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataSanta Fe County value
Primary care shortage · high17.4
7/100New Mexico 16.1United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSanta Fe County value
Math scores · low2.61
9/100New Mexico 2.70United States 3.032018University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSanta Fe County value
Drought exposure · high82%
10/100New Mexico 85%United States 43%Nov 2025–Oct 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAASanta Fe County value
Child poverty rate · high20.1%
13/100New Mexico 20.5%United States 15.5%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B17001High uncertainty

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
2,009 (2015-2019) → 1,293 (2020-2024)
−36%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
48.1% (2015-2019) → 70.1% (2020-2024)
+22 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
21.5% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−21 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Worsening
5.0% (2015-2019) → 25.9% (2020-2024)
+21 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Poverty rateImproving
19.7% (2015-2019) → 6.5% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
18.0% (2015-2019) → 10.4% (2019-2023)
−7.6 pts4 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.2%

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, El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico improved on 1 of 5 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 4 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.

Improved1

Broadband+22 points48.1% → 70.1%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 5 measures

Change of every measure of El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Broadband subscriptions	48.1%2015-2019	70.1%2020-2024	+22 points	Improved	93%
High school diploma or higher	78.8%2015-2019	76.4%2020-2024	−2.4 points	Within the margin of error	13%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3672015-2019	0.3462020-2024	−0.021	Within the margin of error	68%
Median household income	$61,2812015-2019	$67,8262020-2024	+11%	Within the margin of error	17%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%

“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 El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of El Valle de Arroyo Seco, 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, El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico itself moved −3.5 points in standing on average over the same 4 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

1,293 residents (±534)

Men
Women

80 and over
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 50–59 men (−10.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

1,293 residents (±534)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

White18%†233
Black0.0%0
Hispanic or Latino82%†1,060

Education

966 residents (±391)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

No high school diploma24%†228
High school or GED6.9%†67
Some college42%

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

636 households (±296)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Under $25k5.7%†36
$25k–50k32%†206
$50k–75k31%†196
$75k–100k11%†73
$100k–150k14%†88
$150k–200k5.8%†37
$200k or more0.0%0

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

636 households (±296)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Own88%†557
Rent12%†79

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Rent (−21.2 points).

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

65 households (±66)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Under $7500.0%0
$750–1,00057%†37
$1,000–1,50043%†28

Home values

557 homes (±293)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Under $150k43%†237
$150k–250k4.3%†24
$250k–400k44%†244

Age of homes

703 homes (±313)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

2010 or later0.0%0
2000–200916%†115
1980–199948%†337

Size of homes

703 homes (±313)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Studio0.0%0
1 bedroom0.0%0
2 bedrooms22%†153

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

568 workers (±297)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Drive alone81%†458
Carpool0.0%0
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.0%0
Bike0.0%0
Work from home19%†110
Other0.0%0

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

458 workers (±298)

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico
New Mexico share

Under 15 min19%†89
15–29 min21%†97
30–44 min59%†

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Santa Fe, 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 Santa Fe County, the county holding most of El Valle de Arroyo Seco's residents.

Santa Fe County has 4,976 employer establishments, 318 for every 10,000 residents (1.28× the US rate of 248; 1.50× New Mexico's), with 48,934 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,618. The Census Bureau also counts 17,772 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 4,976; 17,772 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 318; US 248 · New Mexico 212
Paid employees: 48,934
Average annual pay: $52,618; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	446	28.5	1.37×More than typical	4,090	$75,286	1,621
Restaurants and other eating places	361	23.1	1.26×More than typical	6,989	$30,565	56
Specialty trade contractors	315	20.1	1.30×More than typical	1,717	$50,511	704
Lessors of real estate	271	17.3	1.41×More than typical	709	$64,157	1,580
Construction of buildings	211	13.5	1.78×More than typical	981	$56,491	476
Full-service restaurants	174	11.1	1.45×More than typical	4,158	$33,813	22
Offices of other health practitioners	154	9.8	1.62×More than typical	443	$49,278	998
Management, scientific and technical consulting	141	9	1.34×More than typical	258	$85,236	952
Clothing and accessories stores	139	8.9	2.45×More than typical	1,000	$31,984	170
Limited-service restaurants	133	8.5	1.06×About typical	2,359	$26,348	22
Building equipment contractors	132	8.4	1.40×More than typical	687	$57,061	165
Services to buildings and dwellings	129	8.2	1.22×About typical	1,240	$34,154	754

Rank places for an industry Open Santa Fe County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 156,379 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico: $0 per resident (US $2,007).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $2,007
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.7%

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

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

12.8KFY2020
-263.9FY2021
69.3FY2022

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 9, 2026, loaded Oct 9, 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 El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico, so they do not add up across cities.

El Valle de Arroyo Seco, New Mexico's figures are part of those of Santa Fe County, NM ($72.4M 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: El Valle de Arroyo Seco is mostly in Santa Fe County.

See federal money in Santa Fe 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.

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