Photo: AllenS · Public domainAbout half of Bernalillo’s working residents commute to Albuquerque
Jobs & income C: better than 32% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #25 of 72 in New Mexico.
Walkability A−: more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns · #18 of 73 in New Mexico.
Household incomes here are lower than in 68% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 27 minutes each way (New Mexico 24, U.S. 26). About one in seven work in Bernalillo; the top destination outside it is Albuquerque (47%, 15 miles).
Transit is limited for a town this walkable: about 1.9 transit trips an hour stop near the typical resident at the evening peak, against 5.2 in Albuquerque (EPA, 2020 schedules).
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The short version on getting to work from Bernalillo
Bernalillo trades workers with the towns around it
Bernalillo has about as many jobs (4,371) as working residents (3,705), but they are mostly different people: 3,246 residents leave for work each day while 3,912 people come in. Only 11% of the jobs in Bernalillo are held by people who live here. Day and night ↓
Nearly half of Bernalillo works in Albuquerque
1,732 working residents, 47%, have their main job in Albuquerque, 15 miles away. That’s 4 times as many as work in Bernalillo itself. The commute map ↓
Bernalillo has added jobs fast
Jobs based in Bernalillo went from 2,758 in 2013 to 4,371 in 2023, +58%. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey; a jump in jobs can partly be a big employer changing how it reports its locations.
What’s behind Bernalillo’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Bernalillo is better than 32% of U.S. towns, #25 of 72 in New Mexico. Job access by car holds Bernalillo’s grade up (ahead of 74% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (6.9%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Bernalillo could be anywhere from C− to B−.
Who leaves, who stays, who comes in
On a workday 3,246 residents head out to work, 459 work right here, and 3,912 people come in from elsewhere.
About as many people by day as by night: the people who leave are replaced by the people who come in.
About as many jobs as working residents (1.18 per resident).
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
47% of working residents work in Albuquerque
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Where Bernalillo clocks in
47% of workers
10% of workers
6% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
What the 4,371 jobs in Bernalillo are
4,371 jobs are based in Bernalillo. Here is what they are, next to the jobs Bernalillo’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Bernalillo, 2013 → 2023: 2,758 → 4,371. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
About 27 minutes each way, longer than most of New Mexico
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Bernalillo workers work from home, vs 12% across New Mexico. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 2,943 commuters (the 18% who work from home are left out). Across New Mexico: 84% drive alone, 1% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
Half of Bernalillo commutes less than 13 miles
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Bernalillo is more walkable than most U.S. towns, with limited transit
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Bernalillo is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns, #18 of 73 in New Mexico. The street layout scores higher than the way people actually get to work: 2.2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit, below the 3.4% across New Mexico.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 3,595 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 86% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 1.9 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 68% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 4.2% of Bernalillo households have no vehicle (New Mexico 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). <1% of Bernalillo’s commuters take a bus or train.
Bernalillo is 2,182nd of 2,886 U.S. towns of 6,400 to 12,400 on jobs and income
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Bernalillo, the top three, the last and three more from New Mexico.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 1,283 | Corrales NM | 8,484 | $102K | 7.0% | 6.3% | 7% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 2,180 | Port LaBelle FL | 7,923 | $75K | 11.9% | 4.4% | 1% | C |
| 2,181 | Senatobia MS | 8,473 | $54K | 26.4% | 3.0% | 19% | C |
| 2,182 | Bernalillo NM | 9,159 | $64K | 15.9% | 6.9% | 12% | C |
| 2,183 | Newport TN | 7,049 | $31K | 27.2% | 0.6% | 18% | C |
| 2,184 | Sharon Township OH | 8,948 | $61K | 13.0% | 4.7% | 16% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 2,250 | North Valley NM | 10,455 | $61K | 17.6% | 8.5% | 6% | C |
| … | |||||||
| 2,560 | Ruidoso NM | 7,580 | $53K | 20.6% | 3.3% | 46% | C− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,886 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
10% of Bernalillo works in a bordering town
The biggest share goes to Rio Rancho (10%). Darker towns draw more of Bernalillo’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Bernalillo workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernalillo | – | C | A− | 27 min | $63,880 |
| Placitas | under 1% | A− | C | 31 min | $109,750 |
| Santa Ana Pueblo | under 1% | B+ | C+ | 17 min | $86,250 |
| Rio Rancho | 10% | B+ | B+ | 30 min | $89,596 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Bernalillo: questions
What is the median household income in Bernalillo?
$63,880 (±$6,165) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $64,059 across New Mexico and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Bernalillo?
15.9%, against 17.8% across New Mexico and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Bernalillo?
27 minutes each way on average, against 24 across New Mexico and 26 nationally. 18% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Bernalillo work?
12% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Albuquerque (47%, 15 mi), Rio Rancho (10%, 8 mi), Santa Fe (6%, 40 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Bernalillo walkable?
Bernalillo is more walkable than 77% of U.S. towns (Walkability A−): an EPA walkability index of 12.4 out of 20, and 2% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Bernalillo without a car?
<1% of commuters take transit and 4% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Bernalillo, from the people who make the trip.
More of Bernalillo
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.