The county economy from official statistics, with source and year on every table.
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By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 07/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
Taos County is a county of New Mexico with 34,543 residents. Its economy produced $1,521 million in 2024 (ranked #14 of 33 counties) and had 11,075 jobs with an average annual pay of $45,377 (#23 for pay). The unemployment rate was 5.3% in 2026M09. It is part of the Taos, NM micropolitan area (central county).
Taos County produced about $1,521 million of goods and services in 2024, which is 1.0% of the combined output of the 33 counties of New Mexico that BEA reports (about 1.6% of the state's population lives here), and ranks it 14th of 33 on that measure. Per resident that is $44,026, 37% below the state average; the average for all counties of the state taken together is $69,372. In current dollars output grew 6.7% from 2023 to 2024, before adjusting for inflation.
BLS counts 11,075 jobs located in Taos County on average in 2024, spread over 1,449 employer sites (about 8 jobs per site). That is 0.32 jobs for every resident, close to the 0.31 of the typical county in New Mexico, which tells you whether the county is a place people mostly commute to for work or a place they commute from. The average annual pay per job was $45,377, 25% below the average of all counties in the state ($45,377 against $60,181). Average pay is total wages divided by jobs, so it is pulled up by high earners and counts part-time jobs as whole jobs; it is not the pay of a typical worker. The number of jobs rose 1.9% from 2023 to 2024.
The three largest private industries are accommodation and food services (21.7% of private jobs, $27,978 a year on average), health care and social assistance (19.5% of private jobs, $53,297 a year on average), retail trade (17.6% of private jobs, $34,238 a year on average). Together they hold 58.8% of private-sector jobs. Among industries with at least 3% of jobs, the best paying is professional and technical services at $68,506 a year, followed by construction ($58,406). The county is specialised in several industries: arts, entertainment, recreation (4.9 times the US share, 909 jobs); accommodation and food services (1.9 times the US share, 1,965 jobs); retail trade (1.4 times the US share, 1,588 jobs). A location quotient above 1 means an industry employs a larger share of workers here than in the whole country, so these are the industries where local employers compete hardest for skills. Several of the biggest employers pay well below the county average: accommodation and food services ($27,978). Jobs there are plentiful but the pay is lower than the headline average suggests.
In 2026M09 the unemployment rate in Taos County was 5.3%, 10% above the average of the state's counties (5.3% against 4.8%). The labour force (people working or looking for work) numbered 14,704. Over the last 12 months it ranged from 4.3% (2025M09) to 6.1% (2026M07); the latest month is preliminary and BLS revises it. These county rates are not seasonally adjusted, so compare the same month across years.
The median household income was $58,950 (ACS 2020–2024), 8% below the state median ($58,950 against $64,059). The guide covers 1 city with this as the main county: Taos. Open any of them for rent, home values, commuting and climate.
Counties close to Taos County in output are Chaves County, Valencia County, Grant County, Rio Arriba County. Compare their jobs, pay and unemployment on their own pages.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ | Rank among the 33 counties of New Mexico ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 34,543 | 14 of 33 |
| GDP 2024 | $1,521 million | 14 of 33 |
| GDP per resident | $44,026 | 22 of 33 |
| Jobs (QCEW 2024) | 11,075 | 14 of 33 |
| Average annual pay | $45,377 | 23 of 33 |
| Job change vs 2023 | +1.9% | 15 of 33 |
| Unemployment rate (lower is better) | 5.3% | 23 of 33 |
| Median household income | $58,950 | 7 of 32 |
Federal jobs in New Mexico (864) →All cities of New MexicoState guide: New Mexico
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.
Cities of this guide whose main county is Taos County.
| City ⇅ | Population ⇅ | Median household income ⇅ | Median rent ⇅ | Median home value ⇅ | Bachelor's+ ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taos | 6,458 | $47,304 | $883 | $445,900 | 39.0% |
| Industry ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Share of private jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Concentration vs US (location quotient) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation and food services | 1,965 | 21.7% | $27,978 | 1.95 |
| Health care and social assistance | 1,766 | 19.5% | $53,297 | 1.11 |
| Retail trade | 1,588 | 17.6% | $34,238 | 1.44 |
| Arts, entertainment, recreation | 909 | 10.1% | $34,397 | 4.88 |
| Construction | 562 | 6.2% | $58,406 | 0.97 |
| Administrative and waste services | 386 | 4.3% | $54,308 | 0.59 |
| Professional and technical services | 280 | 3.1% | $68,506 | 0.36 |
| Educational services | 258 | 2.9% | $53,861 | 1.13 |
| Other services (except public administration) | 251 | 2.8% | $40,944 | 0.75 |
| Finance and insurance | 192 | 2.1% | $54,754 | 0.43 |
| Real estate and rental | 189 | 2.1% | $37,291 | 1.10 |
| Utilities | 153 | 1.7% | $66,877 | 3.63 |
| Manufacturing | 140 | 1.5% | $41,924 | 0.15 |
| Wholesale trade | 127 | 1.4% | $59,519 | 0.29 |
| Information | 115 | 1.3% | $57,106 | 0.55 |
| Transportation and warehousing | 63 | 0.7% | $42,249 | 0.13 |
| Mining, oil and gas | 54 | 0.6% | $69,664 | 1.29 |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing | 36 | 0.4% | $29,329 | 0.40 |
| Management of companies | 6 | 0.1% | $61,903 | 0.03 |
A location quotient above 1 means the industry is more concentrated here than in the US. BLS withholds sectors with too few employers.
| Measure ⇅ | Value ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Labour force | 14,704 |
| Employed residents | 13,925 |
| Unemployed residents | 779 |
| Unemployment rate | 5.3% |
| Jobs located in the county (QCEW) | 11,075 |
| Employer sites | 1,449 |
Residents employed and jobs located here differ: many residents commute to other counties.
| County ⇅ | Population ⇅ | GDP 2024 ⇅ | GDP per resident ⇅ | Jobs ⇅ | Average annual pay ⇅ | Unemployment ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernalillo County | 673,930 | $54,831 million | $81,360 | 347,440 | $63,493 | 4.6% |
| Doña Ana County | 224,266 | $11,315 million | $50,455 | 79,409 | $49,974 | 5.1% |
| Santa Fe County | 156,105 | $10,087 million | $64,614 | 61,826 | $61,218 | 4.3% |
| Sandoval County | 153,604 | $6,129 million | $39,902 | 35,653 | $60,474 | 4.8% |
| San Juan County | 120,942 | $7,043 million | $58,231 | 46,650 | $56,008 | 5.1% |
| Valencia County | 78,458 | $2,430 million | $30,966 | 17,446 | $49,642 | 5.4% |
| Lea County | 73,733 | $12,858 million | $174,384 | 33,770 | $69,342 | 4.1% |
| McKinley County | 70,431 | $2,894 million | $41,083 | 19,500 | $47,226 | 6.6% |
| Otero County | 68,816 | $3,795 million | $55,145 | 17,528 | $50,017 | 5.0% |
| Chaves County | 64,217 | $2,866 million | $44,624 | 21,658 | $47,769 | 4.8% |
| Eddy County | 61,105 | $11,319 million | $185,239 | 32,197 | $76,419 | 3.6% |
| Curry County | 47,638 | $4,317 million | $90,626 | 18,303 | $46,746 | 4.2% |
| Rio Arriba County | 40,070 | $1,379 million | $34,415 | 9,291 | $48,908 | 4.8% |
| Taos County | 34,543 | $1,521 million | $44,026 | 11,075 | $45,377 | 5.3% |
| Grant County | 27,775 | $1,407 million | $50,654 | 9,440 | $54,413 | 4.9% |
| San Miguel County | 26,850 | $1,005 million | $37,431 | 7,676 | $44,192 | 5.2% |
| Cibola County | 26,845 | $868 million | $32,336 | 7,226 | $48,565 | 6.0% |
| Luna County | 25,611 | $1,242 million | $48,495 | 7,988 | $48,771 | 10.9% |
| Lincoln County | 20,224 | $894 million | $44,214 | 6,782 | $43,202 | 4.8% |
| Los Alamos County | 19,435 | $3,815 million | $196,273 | 22,697 | $113,944 | 2.3% |
| Roosevelt County | 18,928 | $949 million | $50,149 | 5,935 | $45,232 | 4.2% |
| Socorro County | 16,200 | $666 million | $41,120 | 4,870 | $51,836 | 5.4% |
| Torrance County | 15,490 | $881 million | $56,896 | 3,165 | $51,439 | 6.1% |
| Colfax County | 12,322 | $623 million | $50,599 | 4,287 | $44,087 | 5.0% |
| Sierra County | 11,500 | $423 million | $36,783 | 3,522 | $44,291 | 5.8% |
| Quay County | 8,564 | $354 million | $41,292 | 2,508 | $43,268 | 5.0% |
| Guadalupe County | 4,381 | $278 million | $63,402 | 1,415 | $42,161 | 4.8% |
| Mora County | 4,149 | $162 million | $38,944 | 668 | $45,370 | 6.1% |
| Hidalgo County | 4,041 | $255 million | $63,079 | 1,295 | $54,523 | 6.3% |
| Union County | 4,013 | $178 million | $44,467 | 1,221 | $46,421 | 4.1% |
| Catron County | 3,743 | $144 million | $38,523 | 698 | $41,645 | 6.8% |
| DeBaca County | 1,576 | $111 million | $70,350 | 440 | $41,908 | 5.2% |
| Harding County | 741 | $47 million | $63,897 | 162 | $46,650 | 3.8% |
34,543 (Census Bureau ACS 2020–2024).
$1,521 million in 2024 (BEA, current dollars).
5.3% in 2026M09 (BLS, not seasonally adjusted; the latest month may be revised).
11,075 jobs on average in 2024 with an average annual pay of $45,377 (BLS QCEW).