Union County, New Mexico Demographics

Population trends, housing costs, income, commuting, and health, all on one page.

Union County, NM Population Density Map and Area Scores

Area Score

Health, income and education, each graded from F to A+. Explore interactive maps for deeper analysis.

  • B
    Health Around average
  • D
    Income Well below average
    Less wealthy than 81% of counties in New Mexico
  • F
    Education Well below average
    Among the 5 least educated counties in New Mexico

Source: Map AI Methodology

Union County
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Population density, people per sq mi

Population: density and quick facts

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
Population 4,013 2,118,085 337,468,954
Population density (per sq mi) 1.0 17.4 86.4
Population growth (%/yr) -0.84% 0.20% 0.59%
Median age 43.5 38.1 37.3
Households 1,438 836,644 130,235,071

Population in Union County grew by 6.8% from 2009 to 2024, reaching 4,013 in 2024.

Population Growth 2009–2024

Year Union County

Race & Ethnicity

Group Share

Age & Sex

The largest generation in Union County is Millennials, aged 29–44, at 20.7% of residents. That is 0.6 points below New Mexico as a whole.

Residents by birth cohort, from the 2025 age distribution. The right-hand figure is how far each cohort's share sits above or below New Mexico, in percentage points. Children younger than Gen Z and the generations before the Boomers are counted in the population but not shown here, so these shares do not add up to 100%.

Male and female share

Women are 46.0% of the people living in Union County and men 54.0%.

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Residents matching this profile

4,013

100% of everyone living in Union County

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Economy

Union County has a the economy index of D, which means it is barely prosperous.

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
Median household income $47,763 $64,523 $80,455
Income growth (%/yr) 3.37% 4.42% 4.80%
Unemployment rate 6.2% 5.9% 5.2%

The median household income in Union County is about 26% lower than in New Mexico.

Detailed wealth and income breakdown →

Housing

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
Median home price $5,000 $204,122 $248,835
Median rent $683 $1,067 $1,407
Homeownership rate 72.4% 70.0% 65.2%

The median home price in Union County is about 0.6 years' worth of rent — buying at the median price costs roughly as much as paying the median rent of $683 per month for that long.

Full housing market analysis →

Commute Time & Mobility

Commuters in Union County spend about 17 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 70 hours, about 2.9 full days, spent commuting.

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
One-way commute (min) 8.3 18.8 22.4
Round-trip commute (min) 16.7 37.7 44.8
Yearly time spent (hours) 70 157 187
Estimated yearly cost $2,155 $4,866 $5,790
Work from home 6.2% 12.2% 15.0%
Highway traffic (vehicles/day) 1,187 4,931 8,813
Local road traffic (vehicles/day) 92 619 1,355

Fastest commutes among counties in New Mexico: De Baca County (7.9 min), Quay County (8.0 min), Union County (8.3 min).
Slowest: Torrance County (36.5 min), Mora County (30.1 min), Valencia County (30.1 min).

The average commute time in Union County is 8 minutes, shorter than the 19 minutes in New Mexico.

Estimated yearly cost applies a single national wage rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area. Traffic volume figures come from proprietary Ticon and TrafficZoom data.

Commute and transport details →

Education & Households

Union County has a education index of F, which means it scores poorly in education.

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
Bachelor's degree or higher 14.6% 26.3% 31.6%
Average household size 2.46 2.49 2.53

Highest education index among counties in New Mexico: Los Alamos County (0.6), Santa Fe County (0.4), Bernalillo County (0.3).
Lowest: Guadalupe County (0.2), Luna County (0.2), McKinley County (0.2).

Health

Union County has a health index of B, which means it is quite healthy.

Metric Union County New Mexico Avg U.S. Average
Life expectancy (years) 78.5 78.6 78.3
Self-rated poor health 17.2% 17.9% 16.3%
Smokers 19.3% 18.0% 19.0%

Highest health index among counties in New Mexico: Los Alamos County (0.8), Santa Fe County (0.8), Bernalillo County (0.8).
Lowest: McKinley County (0.8), Cibola County (0.8), Luna County (0.8).

Full health data →

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about Union County, New Mexico.

How many people live in Union County, New Mexico?

About 4,013 people live in Union County, New Mexico, in 1,438 households of 2.5 people on average. The median age is 43.5, so residents are older than the U.S. median of 37.3 by about 6 years.

How densely populated is Union County, New Mexico?

Averaged over its land area, Union County, New Mexico has 1 people per square mile, a density typical of rural areas. That is about 1% of the U.S. average of 86.

Is Union County, New Mexico an affordable place to live?

The median home costs 0.1 times the median household income ($5,000 against $47,763), compared with 3.1 times nationally. That is within the traditional rule of thumb of about 3 times income. Median rent of $683 a month takes about 17% of the median household's income, below the 30% level at which HUD considers renters cost-burdened.

What share of adults in Union County, New Mexico have a college degree?

14.6% of adults in Union County, New Mexico hold a bachelor's degree or higher (about 1 in 7), well below the U.S. share of 31.6%.

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