Unemployment in El Cerro Mission (14.8%) is among the highest in the country
Jobs & income D−: better than 4% of U.S. towns on income, poverty, unemployment and job access · #65 of 72 in New Mexico.
Walkability D−: more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns.
Household incomes here are lower than in 88% of U.S. towns. Working residents average 46 minutes each way (New Mexico 24, U.S. 26). Only 1% work in El Cerro Mission; the top destination outside it is Albuquerque (49%, 23 miles).
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 El Cerro Mission
El Cerro Mission workers spend longer getting to work
The average trip takes 46 minutes each way, against 24 across New Mexico. Over a year that’s about 353 hours of commuting, 169 more than the state’s typical worker. Time on the road ↓
El Cerro Mission is a place people come home to
There are 50 jobs based in El Cerro Mission, about one for every ten working residents, so almost everyone works somewhere else. On a workday El Cerro Mission has about 3,600 people in it, 33% fewer than live here. Day and night ↓
Nearly half of El Cerro Mission works in Albuquerque
880 working residents, 49%, have their main job in Albuquerque, 23 miles away. That’s 49 times as many as work in El Cerro Mission itself. The commute map ↓
A young workforce
30% of El Cerro Mission’s working residents are 29 or younger. 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.
What’s behind El Cerro Mission’s Jobs & income grade
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, El Cerro Mission is better than 4% of U.S. towns, #65 of 72 in New Mexico. Job access by car holds El Cerro Mission’s grade up (ahead of 23% of U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (14.8%, U.S. 5.2%).
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, El Cerro Mission could be anywhere from D− to C−.
About 46 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 14.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of El Cerro Mission workers work from home, vs 12% across New Mexico. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 1,755 commuters (the 9% 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.
El Cerro Mission quiets down on a workday
On a workday 1,761 residents head out to work, 20 work right here, and 30 people come in from elsewhere.
About 3,600 people are in El Cerro Mission on a workday afternoon, 33% fewer than live here.
0.03 jobs for every working resident, so most people commute out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
49% 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 El Cerro Mission clocks in
49% of workers
14% of workers
4% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
El Cerro Mission makes things: 38% of its jobs are in goods
50 jobs are based in El Cerro Mission. Here is what they are, next to the jobs El Cerro Mission’s own residents hold wherever they work.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in El Cerro Mission, 2013 → 2023: 33 → 50. 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.
Half of El Cerro Mission commutes less than 22 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.
Most trips from El Cerro Mission start in a car
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, El Cerro Mission is more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns, #72 of 73 in New Mexico. Both inputs place El Cerro Mission near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 1,927 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 0% 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 0.0 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 20% 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). 0.0% of El Cerro Mission households have no vehicle (New Mexico 5.6%, U.S. 8.4%). 0% of El Cerro Mission’s commuters take a bus or train.
How El Cerro Mission compares with U.S. towns of 3,700 to 7,200
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of El Cerro Mission, the top three, the last and three more from New Mexico.
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riverwoods IL | 3,766 | $249K | 0.7% | 0.7% | 2% | A+ |
| 2 | Huntington Woods MI | 6,274 | $190K | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2% | A+ |
| 3 | Glendale MO | 6,060 | $171K | 2.0% | 0.3% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 588 | White Rock NM | 5,716 | $157K | 2.5% | 0.2% | 4% | A |
| … | |||||||
| 764 | Placitas NM | 4,223 | $110K | 3.2% | 3.5% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 832 | Los Ranchos de Albuquerque NM | 5,790 | $73K | 8.8% | 0.8% | 3% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,573 | Corry PA | 5,993 | $49K | 25.9% | 9.8% | 44% | D− |
| 3,574 | Jacksboro TX | 4,735 | $55K | 21.8% | 11.9% | 23% | D− |
| 3,575 | El Cerro Mission NM | 5,323 | $49K | 25.0% | 14.8% | 1% | D− |
| 3,576 | Geneva AL | 4,307 | $47K | 27.3% | 9.8% | 34% | D− |
| 3,577 | Ville Platte LA | 6,172 | $28K | 31.2% | 22.8% | 19% | D− |
| … | |||||||
| 3,651 | Lake Isabella CA | 4,059 | $27K | 40.7% | 8.6% | 18% | 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.
El Cerro Mission and the towns next door
Darker towns draw more of El Cerro Mission’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | El Cerro Mission workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Cerro Mission | – | D− | D− | 46 min | $49,470 |
| El Cerro | under 2% | B+ | C | 28 min | $106,136 |
| Monterey Park | under 2% | — | — | — | — |
Same-state neighbors only. Monterey Park: fewer than 1,000 residents, not graded. 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 El Cerro Mission: questions
What is the median household income in El Cerro Mission?
$49,470 (±$6,484) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $64,059 across New Mexico and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in El Cerro Mission?
25.0%, against 17.8% across New Mexico and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from El Cerro Mission?
46 minutes each way on average, against 24 across New Mexico and 26 nationally. 9% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in El Cerro Mission work?
1% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Albuquerque (49%, 23 mi), Los Lunas (14%, 9 mi), South Valley (4%, 17 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is El Cerro Mission walkable?
El Cerro Mission is more walkable than 2% of U.S. towns (Walkability D−): an EPA walkability index of 3.8 out of 20, and 0% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around El Cerro Mission without a car?
0% of commuters take transit and 0% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from El Cerro Mission, from the people who make the trip.
More of El Cerro Mission
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.