Fastest Growing Counties in New Mexico (2026)

County
Rank
Change (2020)
2026 Pop.
2020 Pop.
Valencia County18.68%83,13276,495
Sandoval County28.21%161,519149,271
Torrance County37.96%16,25815,059
Catron County46.18%3,8313,608
Doña Ana County54.55%230,078220,059
Otero County63.31%70,11267,868
Eddy County71.4%63,21962,344
Santa Fe County80.92%156,494155,068
Taos County90.66%34,68734,459
Lea County100.56%75,05274,634
Los Alamos County11-0.14%19,38719,414
Cibola County12-0.39%26,85926,963
San Juan County13-1.01%120,155121,384
Luna County14-1.03%25,19125,452
Rio Arriba County15-1.33%39,71640,253
Sierra County16-1.6%11,37711,562
Bernalillo County17-1.75%665,021676,867
Colfax County18-2.4%12,05712,354
De Baca County19-2.55%1,6441,687
Guadalupe County20-2.61%4,3244,440
Lincoln County21-3.23%19,65220,308
Chaves County22-3.33%62,98265,154
Roosevelt County23-3.7%18,44519,153
San Miguel County24-3.86%26,08627,134
Quay County25-3.99%8,3668,714
Grant County26-4.22%27,01328,203
Mora County27-4.32%4,0104,191
Socorro County28-4.86%15,74616,551
Curry County29-5.04%45,93348,372
Harding County30-5.98%613652
Hidalgo County31-6.15%3,9074,163
McKinley County32-6.8%67,60772,540
Union County33-7.89%3,7494,070

New Mexico Counties Growth Overview

New Mexico's counties show varied growth patterns from 2020 to 2026. Valencia County leads with 1.4% annualized growth, followed by Sandoval County (1.32%) and Torrance County (1.29%). The largest counties are Bernalillo County (665,021), Doña Ana County (230,078), and Sandoval County (161,519). Of the 33 counties in New Mexico, 10 are growing while 23 have experienced population decline. Overall, counties averaged -0.19% annualized growth, with total population growing by 0.05% annually.

Change (2020)

-0.05

-0.025

0

0.025

0.05

0.075