Lea County, New Mexico Population 2024

71,859

Lea County, New Mexico's estimated 2024 population is 71,859 with a growth rate of -0.34% in the past year according to the most recent United States census data. Lea County, New Mexico is the 7th largest county in New Mexico. The 2010 population was 64,598 and has seen a growth of 11.24% since that time.

Note: data after 2022 is projected based on recent change

28 Rows

Year
Population
Growth
Change
202970,649-242-0.34%
202870,891-242-0.34%
202771,133-242-0.34%
202671,375-242-0.34%
202571,617-242-0.34%
202471,859-242-0.34%
202372,101-242-0.33%
202272,343-719-0.98%
202173,062-1,580-2.12%
202074,6423,5194.95%
201971,1231,5852.28%
201869,5385070.73%
201769,031-1,244-1.77%
201670,275-1,205-1.69%
201571,4801,3021.86%
201470,1781,5472.25%
201368,6312,2573.4%
201266,3741,2391.9%
201165,1355370.83%
201064,59800%
199055,765-228-0.41%
198055,9936,43912.99%
197049,554-3,875-7.25%
196053,42922,71273.94%
195030,7179,56345.21%
194021,15415,010244.3%
19306,1442,59973.31%
19203,545-67,104-94.98%
2024 Growth Rate
-0.34% (-242)
County Website
Lea County
2020 Population
74,642
Area
4392 mi²
Density
16 people/mi²
Growth Since 2020
-3.73% (-2,783)
Founded
March 17, 1917

Population by Race

Race
Population
Percentage (of total)
White45,58762.36%
Two or more races17,35023.73%
Other race5,8488%
Black or African American3,0784.21%
Native American8001.09%
Asian4400.6%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander00%

White

Two or more races

Other race

Black or African American

Native American

Asian

Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

Lea County, New Mexico Population by Race

Lea County, New Mexico Population Pyramid 2024

Lea County, New Mexico Median Age

32.2

Total

31.8

Male

32.7

Female

Lea County, New Mexico Adults

There are 51,190 adults, (8,017 of whom are seniors) in Lea County, New Mexico.

Lea County, New Mexico Age Dependency

69.3

Age Dependency Ratio

18.6

Old Age Dependency Ratio

50.8

Child Dependency Ratio

Lea County, New Mexico Sex Ratio

Female35,16948.11%
Male37,93451.89%

Lea County, New Mexico Population by Age

Lea County, New Mexico Renter vs Owner Occupied by Household Type

Household Type
Count
Average Size
Owner
Renter
All24,3792.968.431.6
Married11,5973.5582.517.5
Non Family7,5501.2959.940.1
Female3,0833.7651.448.6
Male2,1493.8446.653.4

3.49

Average Family Size

2.9

Average Household Size

68.4%

Rate of Home Ownership

Married

Male

Female

NonFamily

owner

renter

Lea County, New Mexico Households and Families

Male

Female

Education Attained
Count
Percentage
9th to 12th Grade4,92811.35%
Associates Degree3,3727.77%
Bachelors Degree3,2987.6%
Graduate Degree3,0407%
High School Graduate14,38033.12%
Less Than 9th Grade5,45012.55%
Some College8,94420.6%

Less Than 9th Grade

9th to 12th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Associates Degree

Bachelors Degree

Graduate Degree

Lea County, New Mexico Educational Attainment by Sex (over 25)

Lea County, New Mexico Educational Attainment by Race

High School Graduation Rate

Bachelors Rate

Race
Total
High School
Bachelors
Hispanic23,71915,2121,627
White17,15015,6244,304
2+ Races9,3345,567632
Other Race3,5232,306353
Black1,5521,356216
Native American600459103
Asian19118393

The highest rate of high school graduation is among asian people with a rate of 95.81%.

The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 48.69%.

Lea County, New Mexico Educational Attainment by Race

All

Male

Female

Name
Average
Male
Female
Bachelors Degree$63,578$68,474$46,523
Graduate Degree$72,012$76,620$71,229
High School Graduate$48,030$67,915$23,998
Less Than 9th Grade$36,833$45,112$18,505
Overall$47,694$62,423$32,689
Some College$43,780$71,608$30,876

$47,694

Average Earnings

$62,423

Average Male

$32,689

Average Female

Lea County, New Mexico Earnings by Educational Attainment

Lea County, New Mexico Language by Age

Only English

Spanish

Other Indo-European Languages

Asian and Pacific Island Languages

Other Languages

Lea County, New Mexico Language

57.2% of Lea County, New Mexico residents speak only English, while 42.8% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 41.27% of the population.

Lea County, New Mexico Language

Lea County, New Mexico Poverty by Race

rate

Name
Total
In Poverty
Poverty Rate
Hispanic43,6218,54219.58%
White22,9463,42714.94%
Multiple16,8412,98317.71%
Other5,7781,32022.85%
Black2,88271524.81%
Native6517010.75%
Asian43240.93%

17.77%

Overall Poverty Rate

15.49%

Male Poverty Rate

20.16%

Female Poverty Rate

Poverty in Lea County, New Mexico

The race most likely to be in poverty in Lea County, New Mexico is Black, with 24.81% below the poverty level.

The race least likely to be in poverty in Lea County, New Mexico is Asian, with 0.93% below the poverty level.

The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 3.83%. Among those working part-time, it was 21.45%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 29.66%.

Lea County, New Mexico Poverty

rate

Rate
Poverty
Less Than 9th Grade22.33%
High School17.11%
Some College16.48%
Bachelors or Greater4.53%

Lea County, New Mexico Poverty Rate by Education

rate

Rate
Poverty
Male Unemployed34.88%
Female Unemployed23.08%
Female Employed9.83%
Male Employed8.02%

Lea County, New Mexico Poverty Rate by Employment Status and Sex

Lea County, New Mexico Income by Household Type

Households

Families

MarriedFamilies

NonFamilies

Name
Median
Mean
Families$75,953$96,403
Households$65,855$86,086
Married Families$90,006$114,584
Non Families$35,746$56,974

mean

median

Income by Household Type

Lea County, New Mexico Marital Status

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Marriage Rates

46.5%

Overall Marriage Rate

46.3%

Male Marriage Rate

46.7%

Female Marriage Rate

Lea County, New Mexico Married by Age and Sex

male

female

Lea County, New Mexico Marriage

The age group where males are most likely to be married is Over 65, while the female age group most likely to be married is 45-54.

Lea County, New Mexico Marital Status by Race

Married

Widowed

Divorced

Separated

NeverMarried

Lea County, New Mexico Marital Status

Second Gulf War

First Gulf War

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

1,851

Number of Veterans

1,689

Male Veterans

162

Female Veterans

War
Veterans
Vietnam561
First Gulf War483
Second Gulf War411
World War II45
Korea44

Lea County, New Mexico Veterans by War

count

Age Group
Veterans
35 to 54678
65 to 74502
75+329
55 to 64296
18 to 3446

Lea County, New Mexico Veterans by Age

count

Name
Veterans
% of Total
White1,4430.04444239120391758
Hispanic4480.015390957812285283
2+ Races1340.011859456589078679
Other Race1260.028985507246376812
Black870.040864255519023014
Native American580.08721804511278196
Asian30.01507537688442211

Lea County, New Mexico Veterans by Race

Lea County, New Mexico Veterans by Education

Less Than 9th Grade

High School Graduate

Some College

Bachelors or Greater

2.16%

Veteran Poverty Rate

24.86%

Veteran Disability Rate

Lea County, New Mexico Veterans by Education

LaborForceParticipation

62.3%

Labor Force Participation

57.6%

Employment Rate

7.4%

Unemployment Rate

Lea County, New Mexico Employment by Age

LaborForceParticipation

Lea County, New Mexico Employment by Race

LaborForceParticipation

Lea County, New Mexico Employment by Education

Origin of Non-Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.

Origin of Naturalized Citizens

Europe

Asia

Africa

Oceania

Latin America

North America

45.29%

Born in Lea County, New Mexico

82.28%

Native Born

17.72%

Foreign Born

13.41%

Non Citizen

4.31%

Naturalized

Place of Birth

82.28% of Lea County, New Mexico residents were born in the United States, with 45.29% having been born in New Mexico. 13.41% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.

Lea County, New Mexico Place of Birth

Sources