Jobs, pay and daily life in Chaparral, from official statistics with source and year on every table.
Click any dot to open that city: jobs, pay, rent, commute, county economy and climate. Dot size follows population; colours follow the state flag.
By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Chaparral is a city in New Mexico with 18,186 residents. The median household earns $46,017 a year and the median rent is $853 a month, which is 22.2% of the median household income. It is part of the Las Cruces, NM metropolitan area, where BLS counts 80,000 jobs.
How Chaparral compares. Among the 40 largest places in New Mexico, Chaparral is #14 by population, #38 for college degrees (#1 = most), #32 for long commutes (#1 = fewest), #31 for household income (#1 = highest). Its county, Doña Ana County, is #13 of 33 counties for average pay ($49,974).
Chaparral has 18,186 residents (ACS 2020–2024), about 0.9% of the population of New Mexico. It covers 59 square miles of land, which works out to roughly 308 people per square mile. The median age is 31.6, 20% younger than the state median (31.6 against 39.4). It is a census-designated place: a community the Census Bureau counts as a unit, without a city government of its own, so services such as police, roads and zoning usually come from the county.
The median gross rent is $853 a month (rent plus utilities), 20% below the state median ($853 against $1,067). Over a year that is 22.2% of the median household income. US housing guidance treats housing as affordable when it takes 30% of income or less, so the typical household is under that line. The median home value is $109,300, which is 2.4 times the median household income ($46,017); a ratio under 4 usually means ownership is within reach for many households. 69.4% of households own their home, about the same as the state average (69.4% against 70.0%).
The Las Cruces, NM metropolitan area has 80,000 jobs in the BLS wage survey, and the median pay across all occupations is $42,070 a year, 17% below the national median ($42,070 against $50,980). The biggest occupation groups are office and administrative support (9,840 jobs, median $40,110); healthcare support (8,200 jobs, median $27,970); food preparation and serving related (8,050 jobs, median $29,490). The area is most specialised in healthcare support (2.0 times) and educational instruction and library (1.4 times), where the share of workers is well above the national share. The best-paying groups with at least 5,000 jobs are educational instruction and library ($61,380) and office and administrative support ($40,110). In 2026M09 the unemployment rate of Doña Ana County was 5.1%. 55.0% of residents aged 16 and over are in the labour force. The city lies in Doña Ana County; its jobs, pay by industry and GDP are on the county page.
Among workers, 83.9% drive alone, 0.0% use public transit, 1.0% walk, 4.5% work from home. 19.4% of workers commute 45 minutes or more, 52% above the state average (19.4% against 12.8%).
10.6% of adults aged 25 and over hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 66% below the state share (10.6% against 31.0%). 30.6% of residents were born outside the United States, 225% above the state share (30.6% against 9.4%). The poverty rate is 27.4%, 54% above the state rate (27.4% against 17.8%).
The warmest month is Jul, averaging 83°F (28.3°C), and the coolest is Jan at 42°F (5.8°C). About 259 mm (10 inches) of precipitation falls in a year; Jul is the wettest month (53 mm) and Apr the driest (7 mm). These values come from NASA satellite-based climatology on a grid of about 50 km, so they describe the wider area, not a weather station in the city.
Closest cities in this guide: Anthony (11 miles, rent 34% lower); El Paso (14 miles, rent 26% higher); Sunland Park (19 miles, rent 8% higher); Santa Teresa (20 miles, rent 59% higher). Rent differences are against Chaparral; use the Compare tab to put any two cities side by side.
Federal jobs in New Mexico (864) →State guide: New MexicoCountry guideDoña Ana CountyNew Mexico rankings
These links go to official sources and open in a new window. The first one is the government's or company's own site as listed in Wikidata (property "official website"); check it before relying on it.
There are 864 federal postings open in New Mexico (USAJOBS, state level; we do not have a city filter for them). Private-sector jobs are not in this feed.
Open federal jobs in New Mexico →
| Occupation ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Location quotient ⇅ | Median pay (year) ⇅ | Entry (10th pct.) ⇅ | Top (90th pct.) ⇅ | Median vs US ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 6,430 | 2.90 | $27,840 | $26,000 | $32,450 | -22% |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 2,870 | 1.45 | $27,560 | $26,290 | $34,630 | -12% |
| Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 2,360 | 2.69 | $41,030 | $31,200 | $56,190 | -14% |
| Retail Salespersons | 2,110 | 1.05 | $30,460 | $26,780 | $40,400 | -14% |
| Cashiers | 1,630 | 1.02 | $28,710 | $26,760 | $35,430 | -13% |
| Customer Service Representatives | 1,480 | 1.11 | $36,080 | $27,650 | $48,570 | -19% |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 1,370 | 0.94 | $32,290 | $29,140 | $45,430 | -14% |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 1,340 | 1.18 | $35,410 | $27,900 | $41,560 | -4% |
| Registered Nurses | 1,280 | 0.74 | $83,310 | $65,240 | $116,530 | -15% |
| General and Operations Managers | 1,260 | 0.70 | $85,770 | $47,100 | $196,800 | -19% |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 1,190 | 1.02 | $38,670 | $26,490 | $64,750 | +10% |
| Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary | 1,020 | 1.39 | $40,930 | $26,950 | $46,390 | +11% |
| Office Clerks, General | 1,000 | 0.79 | $36,810 | $27,830 | $45,700 | -18% |
| Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education | 890 | 1.25 | $74,100 | $58,120 | $75,460 | +16% |
| Construction Laborers | 860 | 1.52 | $39,460 | $29,490 | $54,830 | -16% |
| Food Preparation Workers | 830 | 1.81 | $32,360 | $28,550 | $35,230 | -8% |
| Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | 810 | 0.76 | $48,400 | $37,770 | $63,790 | -17% |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 780 | 0.52 | $33,350 | $27,080 | $44,380 | -17% |
| Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education | 760 | 1.39 | $75,250 | $57,680 | $75,980 | +4% |
| Cooks, Restaurant | 730 | 1.00 | $30,980 | $27,610 | $38,750 | -17% |
These figures are for the whole Las Cruces, NM metropolitan area, not the city alone.
Median pay across all occupations: $42,070 (US $50,980); unemployment 5.1% (2026M09).
| Industry (residents) ⇅ | Share of employed residents ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Education and health care | 23.8% |
| Retail trade | 12.9% |
| Construction | 12.5% |
| Manufacturing | 9.4% |
| Transportation, warehousing, utilities | 8.3% |
| Finance, insurance, real estate | 6.3% |
| Arts, entertainment, accommodation, food | 6.0% |
| Other services | 5.6% |
| Professional, scientific, management, administrative | 5.0% |
| Public administration | 4.5% |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining | 2.3% |
| Information | 2.2% |
| Wholesale trade | 1.2% |
Cities have no official GDP or payroll count of their own. These figures are for the county (the first of several) where Chaparral lies and cover the whole county, not only the city. The city also extends into Otero County.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP (2024) ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs (QCEW 2024) ⇅ | Employer sites ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Job change vs 2023 ⇅ | Unemployment rate ⇅ | Labour force ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doña Ana County | 224,266 | $11,315 million | $50,455 | 79,409 | 5,817 | $49,974 | +2.2% | 5.1% | 104,828 |
| Otero County | 68,816 | $3,795 million | $55,145 | 17,528 | 1,328 | $50,017 | +0.0% | 5.0% | 24,008 |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health care and social assistance | 16,848 | 27.9% | $45,527 | 1.48 |
| Accommodation and food services | 8,364 | 13.9% | $23,010 | 1.16 |
| Retail trade | 8,134 | 13.5% | $32,745 | 1.03 |
| Construction | 4,363 | 7.2% | $55,376 | 1.05 |
| Administrative and waste services | 3,902 | 6.5% | $51,275 | 0.83 |
| Professional and technical services | 3,191 | 5.3% | $77,113 | 0.58 |
| Manufacturing | 3,140 | 5.2% | $48,670 | 0.48 |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 2,370 | 3.9% | $38,110 | 3.69 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 2,207 | 3.7% | $54,409 | 0.66 |
| Finance and insurance | 1,500 | 2.5% | $72,418 | 0.47 |
| Wholesale trade | 1,472 | 2.4% | $55,375 | 0.47 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 1,408 | 2.3% | $39,547 | 0.59 |
| Educational services | 904 | 1.5% | $51,016 | 0.55 |
| Real estate and rental | 804 | 1.3% | $43,794 | 0.65 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 628 | 1.0% | $25,429 | 0.47 |
| Information | 479 | 0.8% | $52,914 | 0.32 |
| Utilities | 332 | 0.6% | $86,190 | 1.10 |
| Management of companies | 193 | 0.3% | $63,815 | 0.14 |
| Mining, oil and gas | 64 | 0.1% | $52,814 | 0.21 |
QCEW counts jobs covered by unemployment insurance; sectors with too few employers are withheld by BLS. Latest-month unemployment is preliminary.
| How residents get to work ⇅ | Share ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Drive alone | 83.9% |
| Public transit | 0.0% |
| Walk | 1.0% |
| Work from home | 4.5% |
| Commute of 45 minutes or more | 19.4% |
Shares are of workers aged 16 and over; they describe residents, wherever they work.
| Indicator ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Median household income | $46,017 |
| Income per person | $20,268 |
| Median gross rent per month | $853 |
| Yearly rent as share of median household income | 22.2% |
| Median home value | $109,300 |
| Homeowners | 69.4% |
| Poverty rate | 27.4% |
| Price level of the metro area (US = 100) | 90.2 |
| Metro median pay, all occupations | $42,070 |
Estimate for a wage earner: 2026 federal brackets and standard deduction (IRS), Social Security 6.2% up to $184,500, Medicare 1.45% (+0.9% above $200,000 single / $250,000 married), and a state rate you set; graduated states show 0 until you enter your own estimate. It ignores credits, pre-tax deductions, local taxes and benefits. Sources: IRS: tax year 2026 inflation adjustments · SSA wage base per Federal Register notice 2025-19763.
State tax: Graduated, top rate 5.90%.
| Indicator ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Median age | 31.6 |
| High school or higher (25+) | 68.5% |
| Bachelor's degree or higher (25+) | 10.6% |
| Born abroad | 30.6% |
| Labour force participation (16+) | 55.0% |
Work permits are federal: see permits and first steps.
| Month ⇅ | Mean temperature (°C) ⇅ | Mean temperature (°F) ⇅ | Precipitation (mm) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5.8 | 42 | 14 |
| Feb | 8.3 | 47 | 13 |
| Mar | 12.8 | 55 | 10 |
| Apr | 17.3 | 63 | 7 |
| May | 22.2 | 72 | 11 |
| Jun | 28.0 | 82 | 15 |
| Jul | 28.3 | 83 | 53 |
| Aug | 27.2 | 81 | 48 |
| Sep | 23.6 | 74 | 41 |
| Oct | 17.9 | 64 | 21 |
| Nov | 11.0 | 52 | 12 |
| Dec | 5.8 | 42 | 14 |
Satellite-reanalysis climatology on a grid of roughly 50 km, so it smooths local effects (hills, coast, city heat). It is not a weather-station record.
| City ⇅ | State ⇅ | Distance (straight line) ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony | NM | 11 mi | 8,767 | $38,132 | $561 |
| El Paso | TX | 14 mi | 680,130 | $59,745 | $1,073 |
| Sunland Park | NM | 19 mi | 17,463 | $62,814 | $920 |
| Santa Teresa | NM | 20 mi | 6,041 | $63,161 | $1,356 |
| Socorro | TX | 29 mi | 37,123 | $54,744 | $1,032 |
| Las Cruces | NM | 30 mi | 114,197 | $55,422 | $974 |
| Alamogordo | NM | 63 mi | 31,307 | $55,952 | $902 |
| Deming | NM | 80 mi | 15,221 | $34,165 | $586 |
| Truth or Consequences | NM | 97 mi | 6,019 | $33,788 | $714 |
| Ruidoso | NM | 100 mi | 7,699 | $52,736 | $944 |
Straight-line distance in miles, not driving distance.
Pick two cities.
vs
18,186 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024 5-year estimate).
$853 a month (ACS 2020–2024), which is 22.2% of the median household income.
$46,017 (ACS 2020–2024, in 2024 dollars).
5.1% (BLS county, Doña Ana County (latest month 2026M09)).
New Mexico. See the state guide for minimum wage, taxes and pay.