El Paso 2026The independent atlas report on El Paso, United States.

El Paso in 200 numbers. Read this before you read anything else.

A hot desert with mild winters and a single July through September monsoon window on the US Mexico border at 1,140 meters elevation city, 868,000 people, the city profile in one stat grid.

El Paso scored 6.4 on the everycity index, placing it in the relevant band of the global cohort of 5,000 cities. A single person spends $1,680 a month here including rent, groceries, transport and utilities. A working couple spends $2,540. Internet runs at a median 194 Mbps on residential fiber per OOKLA Speedtest readings from April 2026. The average reported salary, blended across sectors, is $3920 a month. The highest marginal income tax rate is 37 percent. Safety reads 7.2 on a 0 to 10 scale, with the night safety subindex at 6.6, the female solo subindex at 7.0, and the family subindex at 7.4. The metro area holds 868,000 people and sits at 31.7619 degrees, -106.485 degrees. The summer high lands at 36 Celsius, the winter low at 2. The city averages 3,762 sunshine hours a year.

Compared with peer cities, El Paso sits within the US Mexico border metro cohort on monthly outlay. See El Paso vs Phoenix for the head to head numbers. For broader context, the americas continent page ranks the region's top 25 cities. For salary comparisons across jurisdictions, run the tax calculator, or read the after tax salary comparison longform. The full method behind the everycity composite is published on the methodology page.

Risk, by the subindex.

No moral panic, no rose tint. Four subindices, all referenced to the latest national crime statistics and Numbeo's crowdsourced safety panel.

El Paso's overall safety score lands at 7.2, which places it in the relevant band on the everycity index. The female solo subindex reads 7.0 and the night walk subindex reads 6.6, both of which capture the variance between daytime and after dark experience. Family safety, weighted for primary school commute risk, sits at 7.4. Health insurance for relocating expats typically runs $45 to $145 a month through SafetyWing, which the editorial team uses on assignment. For broader context the global safest cities ranking places El Paso alongside its regional peers in the cohort table.

The neighborhoods that draw the bulk of incident reports are noted in section 6. The areas that draw the fewest are listed there as well, with rents reflecting both reputation and reality. A foreigner walking with a phone in hand on a main avenue at 1 a.m. should not assume the safest neighborhood numbers apply to that scenario; the 6.6 night subindex is the figure that matters. Solo female nomads should read the safest cities for women ranking alongside this profile, and the best cities for women to live longform. See El Paso vs Phoenix for the head to head safety read against the most common peer city.

Who pays, and how much.

Salaries are gross monthly figures, blended from national labour bureau data and Glassdoor postings active in March 2026.

Largest employers in metro El Paso

1. Fort Bliss US Army installation (the second largest US Army base by area, with 33,000 active duty soldiers and 47,000 family members across the El Paso footprint)
2. El Paso Independent School District and the Ysleta and Socorro school districts (the three largest public school employers in the metro)
3. University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP, the state research university, 24,000 students)
4. Tenet Healthcare El Paso (the integrated private hospital network)
5. The Hospitals of Providence (Tenet Healthcare's regional brand, three full hospitals in the metro)
6. T and T Staff Management and the maquiladora staffing networks across the Ciudad Juarez border (the cross border manufacturing payroll administrators)
7. Foxconn Juarez and the El Paso Juarez maquiladora cluster (the cross border electronics, automotive and medical device assembly operations, with corporate offices on the El Paso side)
8. El Paso Electric Company (the regulated utility, the largest single private employer in the metro)

The blended average salary in El Paso runs $3920 a month, gross of tax. A senior software developer earns $13,328 on local payroll, while a senior financial analyst commands $10,192. The largest employers are listed above; together they represent between 14 and 28 percent of formal sector employment in the metro area depending on the year measured. The top marginal income tax rate is 37 percent. Expats moving regular income across borders typically use Wise at the daily mid market rate, which removes the 1.4 to 3.2 percent retail spread that local banks charge.

For an accurate after tax estimate including local social security, run the tax calculator. For a market wide salary view, the highest salary cities ranking and the highest paying cities after tax ranking place El Paso in the relevant cohort. The lowest tax cities ranking covers the relative position on tax. For a peer set comparison, run El Paso vs Phoenix and El Paso vs Denver.

Seven quarters, one verdict each.

A working map of where to live in El Paso in 2026, ordered loosely from highest cost to lowest commute.

The seven quarters above cover the spread of the rental market in El Paso for a relocating professional. Kern Place and Sunset Heights is the highest priced and the most likely to deliver the lifestyle a Western expat imagines. West El Paso (Upper Valley and Country Club) is the upscale residential pick at a different price point. East El Paso (Northeast and Far East) is the value pick at the cost of a longer commute. Mission Valley and the Lower Valley is the cultural pick, suited to short term assignments or those who prefer density to silence. The full neighborhood by neighborhood walk through, with photos, is in the El Paso neighborhoods longform, scheduled to publish in Q3 2026.

Long term rental supply in El Paso is concentrated in the four to seven year old apartment stock; older buildings often lack reliable elevators or, in some neighborhoods, reliable hot water during the coldest months. Furnished one bedroom listings turn over in a median 11 days at the city center price point and 7 days in the outer ring per the local portals indexed by the editorial property platform guide. The neighborhood matcher tool will rank the seven against your weighted preferences if you score them: neighborhood matcher. For peer city neighborhood maps, see El Paso vs Tucson.

For the kids, and the postgrads.

School and university density, plus the practical commute to each option.

International and bilingual schools

• El Paso Day School (independent, pre K through 8)
• Loretto Academy (Catholic, pre K through 12, the historic private school)
• Cathedral High School (Catholic, all boys, 9 through 12)
• Coronado High School (public, the top rated EPISD comprehensive secondary)
• Franklin High School (public, the top rated YISD comprehensive secondary)
• DSST College Preparatory at the Eastwood High School cluster (public charter)

Universities

• University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP, the state research university)
• El Paso Community College (the regional community college, 28,000 students)
• Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso (the state medical school)
• Paul L Foster School of Medicine (the Texas Tech medical school branch)
• Western Technical College and Park University El Paso (the technical and adult education anchors)

Relocating families in El Paso typically pick from the school cluster listed above. Tuition for relocating expatriate families typically runs $12,000 a year at the lower priced bilingual options and $22,000 a year at the international baccalaureate flagships. Waiting lists for grade entry between January and August are common; the most popular options publish their priority dates on the national education ministry portal each November. The combined family safety subindex of 7.4 on the everycity index should be read alongside the school commute when ranking neighborhoods.

For comparable family rated cities in the region, the family friendly cities ranking and the best cities for international schools ranking are the right starting points. The best cities to raise a family longform covers the parental leave, primary school commute, and weekend public space variables in detail. For local pediatric specialists, the editorial guide on international health insurance lists the in network hospitals near each El Paso school cluster. The United States country page covers the national education policy context.

What makes the city itself.

Food signatures, nightlife rating, and the cultural through line that separates El Paso from its regional neighbors.

The food signatures of El Paso include the El Paso style red enchilada (the New Mexico red chile sauce variant served stacked rather than rolled, with a fried egg on top), chile relleno (the stuffed and battered roasted poblano, the regional staple), the Hatch and Lower Valley green chile cheeseburger, the H and H Coffee Shop counter breakfast (the institution since 1958), the Cattleman's Steakhouse mesquite grilled ribeye in nearby Fabens, the L and J Cafe red chile enchiladas (the EPHS institution since 1927), and the Mexican craft beer and mezcal program at the dense Central El Paso bar corridor across the border in Ciudad Juarez. The high points of the dining year run through April through June and September through October, when restaurant temperatures sit at the comfortable end of the range and the produce calendar peaks. For longer reads on the cuisine, the best food cities ranking and the Michelin cities ranking place El Paso in the relevant cohort regionally. Nightlife sits at a 5.6 rating on the everycity scale, with weeknight venue density highest in Kern Place and Sunset Heights and West El Paso (Upper Valley and Country Club). For coffee culture, the editorial guide on local routines for expats is the right starting point.

The cultural calendar runs through the local national holidays plus two or three city specific festivals that bring the largest annual foot traffic. The United States cultural and creative industries policy is reviewed in detail on the United States country page, and the americas continent page covers the broader pattern across the region. For peer city comparisons, see El Paso vs Phoenix and the best nightlife cities ranking. Visitors planning a scouting trip should also read the best cities for singles longform and the best cities for couples longform.

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