Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Tularosa earns a D−, better than 4% of U.S. towns, mostly because of incomes and schools. The median household income is $52K, and 15% of residents live below the poverty line. Its schools rank behind 82% of the state's. In its favor, homes are within reach, about $185K for a typical one, or 3.3 years of the Alamogordo area’s $56K median household income. Among 73 New Mexico towns, just 3 have a lower median age than Tularosa. Tularosa Original Townsite District is on the National Register of Historic Places. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 77% of U.S. towns.
Where Tularosa beats most towns.
2,842 counted in 2010 and 2,553 in 2020; an estimated 2,662 in 2025.
The decline has turned around: up 3.8% since 2020, after a 10.2% drop in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Mexico), ordered by how far Tularosa is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 549 in 1880, 2,553 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 2 maps from 1948 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tularosa, and how to reach them.
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 Tularosa.
Tularosa trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
Against the 6,592 U.S. towns with household incomes like Tularosa’s, it is less healthy than 61%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
Tularosa: just over a quarter of adults worry about having enough food. Among adults in the town, 18% have diabetes, above both the New Mexico town median (14%) and the median of U.S. towns (12%). In Tularosa, 30% of adults say their health is fair or poor, and 19% report frequent physical distress. Only 6 of the 73 New Mexico towns we compare have a higher share of adults who had a checkup this year than Tularosa.
| Tularosa | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 14% | 12% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 25% | 19% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 14% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 13% | 16% |
| What stands out | Tularosa | NM |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.3% | 73.3% |
| More adults getting a yearly checkup | 73.6% | 69% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.5% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Tularosa school district runs its public schools. The largest public high school is Tularosa High, with 303 students. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tularosa ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 230 | – |
| Tularosa HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 303 | D− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NM on state tests and graduation
Homes are within reach (about $185K for the typical one, B+ for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 21 miles. Values fell 3.5% in the past year while the New Mexico typical home rose 1.7%.
The typical Tularosa home is worth about $185,000, 41% below the New Mexico typical home. Among households in the town, 81% are owner-occupiers, where New Mexico’s towns sit at 70% and U.S. towns at 73%. In Tularosa, the going rate for rent is $1,081 a month.
| Tularosa | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 81% | 70% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,081 a month | $936 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Just just over a tenth of Tularosa’s working residents have a job in town. The top destinations are Alamogordo (27%), Las Cruces (8%) and Albuquerque (5%). The town’s mean commuting time comes in at 23 minutes.
| Tularosa | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $52,000 | $55,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 15% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 23 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
A bachelor’s degree or higher: 23% of adults 25 and older, vs 31% across New Mexico. Children under 18 are 34% of residents (22% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 27% of residents (37% statewide). For residents in Tularosa, the share who are 65 or older is 13%. The town has grown 3.8% since 2020, to 2,662 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Tularosa | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 13% | 18% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 23% | 23% | 29% |
55% women, 45% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.6 points. Across New Mexico, 50.3% of residents are women. Among residents 35 to 44, 60% are women (NM 49%).
| Tularosa | NM | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 18.5% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 15.1% | 10.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.5% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 20.4% | 13.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.9% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 6.5% | 11.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.6% | 12.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 6.5% | 11.5% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6% | 7.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.5% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 32.2% | 25.7% | 26% |
| Some college | 33.6% | 22.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 5.2% | 9.2% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 18.9% | 17.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 3.6% | 13.9% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 2,700, single groups can be off by several points
In Tularosa, the FEMA risk score is 74 of 100. Of the losses FEMA expects in the town, 66% come from inland flooding and 15% from drought. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Tularosa after 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Tularosa's reported crime rate is below New Mexico's. For Tularosa, the level of violent crime is 2.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Tularosa | New Mexico towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.6 per 1,000 residents | 4.4 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 16.2 per 1,000 residents | 16.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Tularosa. Close and well known come first.
16 mi National ParkWhite Sands National Park660K visitors a year
12 mi MuseumNew Mexico Museum of Space History5.0M visitors a year
34 mi National forestLincoln National Forest25 mi Ski areaSki Apache46 runs · 1,796 ft vertical
12 mi Zoo & aquariumAlameda Park Zoo20 mi Ski areaSki Cloudcroft26 runs · 634 ft verticalWhite Sands National Park: uncredited NPS employee, Public domain · New Mexico Museum of Space History: AllenS, Public domain · Lincoln National Forest: Dsw3131, Public domain · Alameda Park Zoo: AllenS, Public domain
1 within 15 miles of the center of Tularosa
About 8 of every 100 Tularosa residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Mexico.
Where Tularosa’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 notable people were born in Tularosa.
Village in New Mexico, United States
Tularosa is a village in Otero County, New Mexico, United States. The town shares its name with the Tularosa Basin, in which the town is located. To the east, Tularosa is flanked by the western edge of the Sacramento Mountains. The population was 2,553 at the 2020 census. During the 1990s and early 2000s, the town, north of the much larger Alamogordo, experienced moderate growth and construction as a bedroom community, especially in the housing industry. Tularosa is noted for its abundance of cottonwood shade trees and its efforts to preserve the adobe-style architecture of its past.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Tularosa grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns. It grades C− for health and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D−.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
5 notable people were born here, including Kim Stanley and Jan Clayton.
