Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,543, settled in 1906.
La Cienega grades B overall, ranked 4th of 72 in New Mexico, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Residents are healthier than 86% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it has 15 miles of trail and 34% conserved land. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $85K. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: the typical home is worth about $517K, 6.5 years of the Santa Fe metro’s $79K median household income. 34% of the land in La Cienega is conserved, against 3.8% in New Mexico’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. La Cienega has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them El Rancho de las Golondrinas and J.B. Jackson House.
Where La Cienega beats most towns.
Where La Cienega’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Mexico), ordered by how far La Cienega is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 3 maps from 1953 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around La Cienega. Close and well known come first.
13 mi National MonumentBandelier National Monument248K visitors a year
25 mi National PreserveValles Caldera National Preserve85K visitors a year
12 mi MuseumGeorgia O'Keeffe Museum
16 mi National Historical ParkPecos National Historical Park37K visitors a year
12 mi Park & preserveSanta Fe Plaza
18 mi Park & preserveKasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National MonumentBandelier National Monument: Andrew Dunn (talk · contribs), CC BY-SA 2.0 · Valles Caldera National Preserve: Jesse Allen and Robert Simmon, Public domain · Georgia O'Keeffe Museum: John Phelan, CC BY 3.0 · Pecos National Historical Park: Mosamiazaz at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Santa Fe Plaza: See above, CC BY 2.0 · Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument: Marshallhenrie, CC BY-SA 4.0
La Cienega is unincorporated, so Santa Fe 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 Aug 27, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in La Cienega.
La Cienega keeps more of its land conserved than most of New Mexico and has less tooth loss than most of New Mexico, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of New Mexico.
Its 2,555 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 93% of New Mexico towns.
La Cienega’s trail density is 1.3 miles per square mile, where New Mexico’s towns sit at 1.0 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Leonora Curtin Wetland Preserve, at 197 acres with 1.3 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. El Rancho de las Golondrinas | 2 mi | 192 |
| 2. Leonora Curtin Wetland Preserve | 1.3 mi | 197 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its widest gap with New Mexico is tooth loss: 7.5% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 14.2% statewide.
26% of La Cienega adults have obesity. La Cienega beats the New Mexico average on 21 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 13% of La Cienega adults report frequent mental distress.
| La Cienega | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 35% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 16% | 17% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 35% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 68% | 69% | 79% |
| What stands out | La Cienega | NM |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.5% | 14.2% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 3.8% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Most working residents leave La Cienega for work: only 3% work in town. Jobs based in La Cienega grew to 495 in 2023, 266 more than in 2013. 10% of residents live below the poverty line in La Cienega.
| La Cienega | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 3.2% | 15% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 10% | 21% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $55,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 13% | 8.4% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Adults 35 to 64 are 49% of residents (37% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (23% statewide). The median age in La Cienega is 44.2 years. 34% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 31% across New Mexico.
| La Cienega | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 17% | 24% | 22% |
| Median age | 44.2 years | 37.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 17% | 18% | 18% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±5.5 points. Across New Mexico, 50.3% of residents are women.
| La Cienega | NM | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.4% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.3% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 17.2% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 16.5% | 11.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 15.6% | 12.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.5% | 11.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.3% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.4% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 27.4% | 25.7% | 26% |
| Some college | 20.7% | 22.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8% | 9.2% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.2% | 17.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.4% | 13.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 3,500, single groups can be off by several points
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 69% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
La Cienega has chilly winters and warm summers, with very little rain. La Cienega’s July high is 89°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 6.5 years of the Santa Fe metro’s $79K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 88% of New Mexico towns; that ratio is one input to its C+ for cost of living.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
5 within 15 miles of the center of La Cienega
About 1 of every 100 La Cienega residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Mexico.
3 places in La Cienega on the National Register of Historic Places.
Census-designated place in New Mexico, United States
La Cienega is a census-designated place (CDP) in Santa Fe County, New Mexico, United States. It is part of the Santa Fe, New Mexico, metropolitan statistical area. As of the 2020 census, La Cienega had a population of 3,885. La Cienega is located on the site of a Keres pueblo that took part in the 1680 Pueblo Revolt.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
One town shares a border with La Cienega.
| Town | NM rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Cienega | #4 | B | C+ | — | B | A |
| Santa Fe | #22 | C | C− | D− | B | A− |
La Cienega reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare La Cienega with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. La Cienega grades B overall, better than 56% of U.S. towns and #4 of 72 in New Mexico. It grades A for health and B for schools.
The typical home is worth about $517,000, 64% above the New Mexico typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
