Untitled photo, 2019
Tornillo’s story
117 years in pictures
The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2019.
- 1909Tornillo is settled
TornilloTX
A town of 1,341, settled in 1909.
Population
1,341
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$184K
+9.2% in a year
Household income
$50K
median
Median age
41.6
years
Jobs based here
232
A commuter town
Is Tornillo a good place to live?
The best of Tornillo’s subject grades is an A+ for cost of living; the weakest is a D for walkability. Tornillo’s concentration of trails is 2.2 miles per square mile, above both the Texas town median (0.3) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). On history, just 45 of Texas’ 1,000 towns do worse. Tornillo has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Tornillo stand out
Where Tornillo beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Small town
1,341 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Nearby towns
How Tornillo grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Texas), ordered by how far Tornillo is from typical.
Cost of livingA+Open →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 5% of U.S. communities; drought tops the listA+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 4.8 of 20; 2.8% of households have no car; 0% of workers walk, bike or ride transitDOpen →HealthThe Hospitals of Providence Horizon City Campus 18.1 miles awayDOpen →Jobs & income$50K median household incomeDOpen →SchoolsBehind 85% of Texas districts on tests and graduationC−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
ClimateMild winters, 98° summer afternoons, 2″ of snow–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 41.6; 7% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
Moving to Tornillo: who provides what
Tornillo is unincorporated, so El Paso County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerEl Paso Electric13.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterEl Paso County Tornillo Wid water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet6 providers98% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesEl Paso CountyEl Paso County provides services here
Register to voteIn personTexas has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereEl Paso County Early Voting ClerkEl Paso County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jun 2025
ZIP code7985379853 100%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Tornillo.
HealthD
Residents of Tornillo are less healthy than nine in ten U.S. towns
Tornillo: 73% of adults had a checkup this year, below both Texas’ towns (74%) and U.S. towns (79%). CDC measures, 31 in all: Tornillo beats Texas on 1 and trails on 19. In Tornillo, 39% of adults say their health is fair or poor.
9%healthier than U.S. townsDHealth Grade
| Tornillo | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 24% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 13% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 15% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 30% | 25% |
31 measures vs. Texas
1 better11 too close to call19 worse
| What stands out | Tornillo | TX |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.1% | 6.1% |
| More uninsured adults | 42.5% | 19.1% |
The Hospitals of Providence Horizon City Campus
18.1 mi away · emergency room
1 of 3
care shortages: mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade A+
Compared with most of Texas and the rest of the country, the FEMA risk score in Tornillo is lower
Households in Tornillo have drawn federal disaster aid once, in 2006. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 56% come from drought and 22% from inland flooding. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 95% of U.S. communities.
5risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
DroughtInland floodingHail
1
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
HousingCost of living grade A+
Tornillo’s typical home value is about $184K
Typical home values rose 9.2% in the year to September 2026. For households in Tornillo, the share who are owner-occupiers is 89%.
$184KZillow home value
Typical home value
Tornillo$184K
Texas$296K
+9.2%
value change, 1 year
1
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
About half of Tornillo’s working residents commute to El Paso
Employers in Tornillo shed 50 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 232. Most people who work leave Tornillo to do it: just 6% work in town. Among residents here, 32% live below the poverty line. The top destinations are El Paso (49%), Fabens (5%) and Socorro (4%).
6%work in town
| Tornillo | Texas towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 32% | 12% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $50,000 | $69,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.5% | 8.3% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Tornillo6%
El Paso49%
Fabens5%
Socorro4%
Horizon City3%
26 mi
median commute distance
232
jobs based in Tornillo
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
D
Walkability grade: more walkable than 6% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
The climate in Tornillo brings mild winters and hot summers
The July high for Tornillo comes to 97°F.
2″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter30–62°
Spring48–83°
Summer67–97°
Fall49–80°
Nov 6
typical first frost
Mar 21
typical last frost
+1.7°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 2,208 acres
7.6 mi
of trails · 2.2 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Tornillo
17pages on Tornillo
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Tornillo; the nearest are
Western Technical CollegeUniversity or college · Private for-profit · El Paso20.9 miEl Paso Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · El Paso28.2 mi$4,080 in-state tuitionTexas Tech University Health Sciences Center-El PasoUniversity or college · Public · El Paso30.1 mi
About 13 of every 100 Tornillo residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Texas.
A commuter town
94% of working residents leave Tornillo for work
Where Tornillo’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
232jobs based in Tornillo
6%of working residents work in town
26 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Tornillo
Place in Texas, United States
Tornillo ( tor-NEE-yoh) is a border town in El Paso County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, Tornillo had a population of 1,432. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined this unincorporated community as a census-designated place (CDP). It is part of the El Paso metropolitan area. The Tornillo and Guadalupe, Chihuahua, area is connected by the Tornillo–Guadalupe International Bridge. The town is the home of Sonic Ranch, the world's largest residential recording complex. In June 2018, the US government opened a tent city detention camp for migrant children at the Marcelino Serna Port of Entry on the Mexican border in Tornillo. By January 11, 2019, the …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 3.5 sq mi
- Elevation
- 3,586 ft
- ZIP code
- 79853
- Area code
- 915
Questions about Tornillo
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Tornillo, TX expensive?
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 A+.