Cost Of Living in Taos, NM

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Taos	New Mexico	National
Cost of living	108	93	100
Goods & Services	100	97	100
Groceries	97	97	100
Health care	96	97	100
Housing	132	86	100
Transportation	93	95	100
Utilities	99	90	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Taos is 17% higher than the New Mexico average
The cost of living in Taos is 8% higher than the national average
Taos housing is 32% higher than the national average
New Mexico general sales tax is 2% lower than the national average
New Mexico state income tax is 35% lower than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$44,514	$3,710	$1,039	$1,336
Renters	$20,114	$1,676	$469	$603

A good indicator of the general affordability of housing in Taos, NM, is the percentage of monthly income that should be spent on housing expenses, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Generally speaking, no more than 28 percent of your total gross income should be spent on your housing expenses and not more than 36 percent of your gross income on total expenses, including debts. In Taos, the median monthly income is $44,514 for those who own their own homes. Under the standard rule, that income level would allow for $1,039 to be budgeted for housing expenses each month, at the most. Renters, on the other hand, earn about $20,114, per the median income in the area. That would allow for renters to spend up to $469 on monthly rental expenses.

New Mexico Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
New Mexico	5%	8.688%

New Mexico Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
New Mexico	1.7%	5.9%

Goods & Services

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$31.90	$24.26	31.5%
Beauty Salon	$50.83	$45.56	11.6%
Toothpaste	$3.62	$3.70	2.3%
Shampoo	$1.15	$1.28	10.5%
Movie	$12.54	$12.13	3.3%
Bowling	$20.89	$18.00	16.1%

Groceries

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.11	$5.84	12.5%
Fried Chicken	$1.32	$1.57	16.1%
Milk	$4.63	$4.67	1.0%
Potatoes	$4.18	$4.93	15.3%
Pizza	$13.42	$12.09	11.0%
Beer	$11.07	$10.41	6.4%

Health Care

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$136.89	$125.68	8.9%
Doctor	$134.17	$135.78	1.2%
Dentist	$111.42	$113.29	1.7%
Ibuprofen	$10.43	$10.65	2.1%
Lipitor	$380.06	$468.60	18.9%

Housing

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$284,100.00	$184,700.00	53.8%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,905.97	$2,346.69	18.8%
Apartment Rent	$775.00	$949.00	18.3%

Transportation

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.50	$3.46	1.1%
Tire Balancing	$43.87	$59.92	26.8%

Utilities

Item	Taos	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$191.24	$193.99	1.4%
Phone	$190.51	$192.25	0.9%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Picuris Pueblo, NM	128	84	16.4%
Chamisal, NM	364	89	10.7%
Rio Lucio, NM	522	91	9.1%
Vadito, NM	307	91	8.6%
Peñasco, NM	648	94	6.2%
Taos, NM	5,950	108	8.2%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Hidden Valley Lake, CA	5,948	132	31.9%
Geneva, OH	5,947	87	13.4%
Slaton, TX	5,953	83	17.3%
Southold, NY	5,946	162	61.6%
Kingston, TN	5,946	90	9.7%
Taos, NM	5,950	108	8.2%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

Cost of Living in Taos, NM