SawmillAZ
Settled in 1952, this town now has 636 residents.
Is Sawmill a good place to live?
38% of residents live below the poverty line in Sawmill, where Arizona’s towns sit at 12% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. Among 141 Arizona towns, just one has a lower median household income than Sawmill. Sawmill’s trail density is 3.0 miles per square mile, above both Arizona’s towns (1.1) and U.S. towns (0.4). Sawmill has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.
636 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Moving to Sawmill: who provides what
Sawmill is unincorporated, so Apache County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Sawmill.
About one in three of Sawmill’s working residents commute to Fort Defiance
The top destinations are Fort Defiance (32%), St. Michaels (14%) and Mesa (8%). For Sawmill, the average trip to work is 35 minutes. Half the trips to work are shorter than 28 miles.
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
A typical July afternoon in Sawmill is cooler than in most of Arizona or the rest of the country
Sawmill has chilly winters and pleasant summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 82° and January nights drop to 17°.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazards: high risk in Sawmill, mostly inland flooding
64% of Sawmill’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by lightning at 13%.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Sawmill stands out in Arizona and nationally: a larger share of its adults sleep under 7 hours
29% of adults get no exercise outside work in Sawmill. Among 141 Arizona towns, just 5 have a higher share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Sawmill. Against the Arizona average, Sawmill comes out ahead on 3 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 23.
| Sawmill | Arizona towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 21% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Sawmill | AZ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.5% | 8.8% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 12.4% | 15.3% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 21.4% | 7.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Canyon de Chelly National Monument and 3 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Sawmill. Close and well known come first.
9 mi National MonumentCanyon de Chelly National Monument341K visitors a year
25 mi National Historic SiteHubbell Trading Post National Historic Site45K visitors a year
16 mi MuseumNavajo Nation Museum
17 mi Zoo & aquariumNavajo Nation Zoological and Botanical ParkPhoto credits
Canyon de Chelly National Monument: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site: Jsweida, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Navajo Nation Museum: Chris English, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Navajo Nation Zoological and Botanical Park: Taken by Staff of the Navajo Nation Zoo, Public domain
Everything we know about Sawmill
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Sawmill; the nearest are
About 4 of every 100 Sawmill residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Arizona.
100% of working residents leave Sawmill for work
Where Sawmill’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Sawmill
CDP in Apache County, Arizona
Sawmill (Navajo: Niʼiijííh Hasání) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Apache County, Arizona, United States. Sawmill is a part of Fort Defiance Agency, which is on the Navajo Nation. The population was 748 at the 2010 census. It is named after and developed around a sawmill. A trading post has been present since 1907.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 5.8 sq mi
- Elevation
- 6,975 ft
- Area code
- 928
Questions about Sawmill
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Sawmill, AZ a good place to live?
Sawmill has fewer than 1,000 residents, too few for fair grades; the figures below are still real.