
Albuquerque vs El Paso
$169/mo more in El Paso
AlbuquerqueEl PasoAbout 254 miles apart, close enough to drive.
- El Paso leaves you more
- No state income tax
- Property tax 2.10%
Same paycheck, two cities. $2,525/mo in El Paso. $2,356/mo in Albuquerque. +$2,028 a year.
Albuquerque
$2,356
left each month
El Paso
$2,525
+$169 vs Albuquerque
Compare
Same paycheck, another city.
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In 2022-2023, 200 households moved Albuquerque → El Paso (avg AGI $39,115). 254 went the other way. The whole move →
+$169 / mo
See full breakdown
| Per month | Albuquerque | El Paso | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | $7,000 | $6,611 | −$389 |
| Income and payroll tax | $1,615 | $1,261 | −$354 |
| Take-home pay | $5,385 | $5,350 | −$35 |
| Rent | $1,119 | $1,008 | −$111 |
| Getting around | $547 | $527 | −$20 |
| Groceries | $376 | $356 | −$20 |
| Healthcare | $423 | $401 | −$22 |
| Utilities | $235 | $223 | −$12 |
| Everything else | $329 | $312 | −$17 |
| Left over | $2,356 | $2,525 | +$169 |
Salary to match Albuquerque
$76,500
Gross pay in El Paso that leaves the same amount as $84,000 in Albuquerque.
Tax difference
+$2,859
A year, in state and local income tax. Texas has no wage income tax.
More about El Paso
Albuquerque, NM in full
High desert, 278 sunny days, and housing that's still cheap.
El Paso, TX in full
297 sunny days and the lowest rents in Texas, on the lowest wages.
The other way
Start in El Paso.
El Paso → Albuquerque →Questions
Is the cost of living lower in El Paso than Albuquerque?
For one adult in a one-bedroom, El Paso leaves about $169 more a month. A one-bedroom is about $1,119 in Albuquerque and $1,008 in El Paso.
Does El Paso have state income tax?
El Paso is in Texas, which has no state income tax.
What changes if you move from Albuquerque to El Paso?
The paycheck is taxed in Texas. Rent stays at the same bedroom count. What you keep is the difference.
Left over each month is take-home pay minus rent and the rest of the bills. The gap between Albuquerque and El Paso changes with the job, remote or local pay, and bedrooms. How we figure this · Leftover vs a COL index · Why a cheaper COL% can still lose leftover.
Estimate, not a quote. How we figure this.