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Cost & Benefits

Cost of living in Carlsbad, New Mexico

Carlsbad, New Mexico has about 31,746 people. Typical rent is $1,236 a month, including utilities, and a typical household earns $72,306 a year. Both figures are Census 2020–2024 medians, not a listing or your pay. This site does not approve or deny benefits. A missing figure stays blank. We do not guess it.

Ranked #17 in New Mexico on the 2026 Most Affordable Towns Index.

Simple answer

Typical rent is $1,236 a month.

Carlsbad is a city in New Mexico. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $72,306 a year.

Is Carlsbad affordable?See benefits in Carlsbad
People
31,746
Census average, 2020–2024
Typical rent
$1,236
Median gross rent, includes utilities
Typical pay
$72,306
Median household income, yearly
Typical home
$200,000
Median home value
2-bedroom fair rent
$1,252
Eddy County, NM

Carlsbad, New Mexico has about 31,746 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.

A typical home is worth about $200,000.

HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Eddy County is $1,252 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Carlsbad. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.

New Mexico's prices sit at 92.2 when the U.S. average is 100. This place is not in a metro area with its own index, so this is the state number from BEA for 2024.

New Mexico taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 7.7% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Carlsbad's exact store tax.

In July 2026, a typical New Mexico home paid 16.09¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Carlsbad's bill.

EIA did not publish a 2025 all-grades gas price for New Mexico in the table we use.

Among 117 places we list in New Mexico with a rent figure, 22 have higher typical rent than Carlsbad.

Nearby places

EBT nearby

USDA has a live map of stores that take SNAP. We did not copy that store list here. The downloadable file is a history file for 2005 through 2025, so the live map is the one to use.

Find SNAP stores near CarlsbadWhat EBT can buy in New Mexico

Locator page updated 2026-09-11. Last checked 2026-10-16.

Food stamps (SNAP) tools in New Mexico

Bigger places in New Mexico

Census 2020-2024. HUD rents for October 2026–September 2027. BEA prices for 2024. Taxes as of January 1, 2026. Checked 2026-10-16. 15,000 places are in this guide.