White Sands, New Mexico

Community in Doña Ana County · population 926 (2020 Census)

Household income: $89,565
Jan low / Jul high: 30° / 96°
Snow a year: 1 in
Tornadoes ≤10 mi since 1950: 4
Median age: 22.5

White Sands is a community of 926 people in Doña Ana County, New Mexico. It ranks better for young professionals than 100% of New Mexico towns, better for cycling than 100% of New Mexico towns, better for families than 93% of New Mexico towns.

White Sands in our rankings:

#17 in The 25 Best Small Towns for Families in New Mexico

How White Sands ranks

Percentile among New Mexico towns with at least 500 people on The Town Files lifestyle rankings. 50 is typical for the state; 90 means better than 90% of New Mexico towns.

The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025).

Homes and cost of living

Median rent is $1,385 a month. 0.0% of households own their home.

Census ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. "Typical town" = median of New Mexico towns with 500+ people.

Housing	White Sands	Typical New Mexico town
Median home value	—	$187,400
Median rent	$1,385	$916
Median household income	$89,565	$55,614
Home value ÷ income	—×	3.2×
Homeownership	0.0%	80.1%
Median year built	2004	1984
Seasonal / vacation homes	0.0%	—

Who lives in White Sands

People	White Sands	Typical New Mexico town
Median age	22.5	39.9
Age 65 and over	1.2%	19.1%
Under 18	21.6%	—
Bachelor's degree or higher	45.3%	18.7%
Below the poverty line	1.9%	18.0%
Veterans	18.1%	—
Born outside the U.S.	7.1%	—
Work from home	3.0%	8.3%
Average commute	10.6 min	24.4 min
Homes with broadband	100.0%	82.9%

Weather in White Sands

July highs average 95.6°F and January lows 29.6°F. About 9.1 inches of rain and melted snow fall a year, with 1.3 inches of snow (typical New Mexico town: 10.7 in). Expect about 109 days a year at 90°F or hotter and 69 nights at or below freezing.

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals: average daily high and low by month; precipitation and snowfall in inches. Temperatures from the State Univ station (17.8 mi away); snowfall estimated from the 3 nearest snow stations, weighted by distance.

Tornadoes, storms and disasters

4 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of White Sands since 1950, compared with 3 for the typical New Mexico town. The strongest, an EF0, struck on May 2, 2007 about 8.0 miles from the town center. The most recent was on May 2, 2007.

NOAA Storm Events Database, tornado tracks (start to end point) passing within 10 miles of the town center, 1950–2026.

Hail of 1 inch or larger has been reported within 10 miles 7 times; the largest was 1.75 inches on April 3, 2004.

Severe weather in Doña Ana County since 1996

NOAA Storm Events Database, Doña Ana County, 1996–2026 (all event types recorded since 1996).

Doña Ana County has been included in 10 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1953, most often for fire, flood, hurricane.

Declared	Incident	Declaration
July 22, 2025	Flood	DR-4886: Severe Storms, Flooding, And Landslides
April 5, 2020	Biological	DR-4529: Covid-19 Pandemic
March 13, 2020	Biological	EM-3460: Covid-19
October 29, 2013	Flood	DR-4152: Severe Storms, Flooding, And Mudslides
August 30, 2006	Severe Storm	DR-1659: Severe Storms And Flooding

Jobs and pay in Doña Ana County

Doña Ana County had 79,409 jobs in 2024, paying an average of $49,974 a year. Unemployment was 4.3% in 2023; in White Sands itself the ACS puts it at 0%.

BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, private-sector jobs and average annual pay.

Annual average unemployment rate (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics via USDA ERS).

Public schools in White Sands

1 public school with 283 students, about 11.8 students per teacher.

School	Grades	Students	Per teacher
WHITE SANDS ELEMENTARY	PK-8	283	11.8

Towns near White Sands

Butterfield Park, NM
9.9 mi · 794 people · home $258,500
University Park, NM
17.2 mi · 3,007 people · home —
Tortugas, NM
17.8 mi · 579 people · home $83,200
Las Cruces, NM
18.5 mi · 111,385 people · home $231,700
San Pablo, NM
18.8 mi · 858 people · home $273,300
Mesquite, NM
19.2 mi · 984 people · home $96,400
San Ysidro, NM
19.5 mi · 2,133 people · home $335,300
Doña Ana, NM
19.8 mi · 874 people · home $96,400

White Sands questions

Is White Sands, New Mexico a good place to retire?

On The Town Files lifestyle rankings, White Sands scores better for retirees than 22% of New Mexico towns and quieter than 21%. 1.2% of residents are 65 or older (median age 22.5).

What is the weather like in White Sands?

July highs average 95.6°F and January lows 29.6°F (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). It gets about 9.1 inches of precipitation a year and 1.3 inches of snow.

Does White Sands get tornadoes?

4 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of White Sands since 1950 (NOAA Storm Events); the strongest was an EF0 on May 2, 2007. The typical New Mexico town has had 3.

How this page is made. Every number comes from public data, matched to White Sands's Census boundary (GEOID 3584845). Comparisons use the median of New Mexico towns with at least 500 people. Weather comes from the nearest NOAA normals station; storm counts use NOAA tornado tracks within 10 miles of the town center.

U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020–2024)
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census and 2025 Gazetteer (2020 / 2025)
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020)
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (1950–2026)
FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations (this product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API but is not endorsed by FEMA) (1953–2026)
NCES Common Core of Data (2023–24)
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; USDA ERS county unemployment (BLS LAUS) (2000–2024)
The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025)

Data snapshot 2026-11-13.