with $100k coming in, swapping out of Denver

change
El Paso, TX cityscape

next stop after denver

El Paso

tx · metro 872k

a dispatch from

el paso

TX

31.76°N

106.49°W

El Paso has the Franklin Mountains running right through the middle of the city (which is rare), with hiking trails inside city limits and the desert wide open just past the suburbs. The Mexican food is exceptional in ways that the rest of Texas doesn't quite match (it's true regional border food). Ciudad Juarez is literally next door across the Rio Grande. The light at sunset is unreal.

metro872k

01 · the verdict

the verdict

$756

cheaper each month than Denver

You'd feel the difference in El Paso. Not life-changing money, but real breathing room next to Denver.
landable, recorded on the el paso entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,473/mo

21% cheaper than Denver(vs $1,863/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$367/mo less in state tax than Denver

vs 4.4% in Denver

03after rent

$6,860/mo

$756 more than Denver

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$231k

61% cheaper than Denver

vs $599k in Denver

05metro size

872k

vs 3.0M in Denver

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

222

pleasant days a year, in el paso.

Denver only logs 174 pleasant days. Summer asks for something in return: 60 days top 95° here, 8 in Denver.

But the calendar thins out: Denver stays 15.1× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

65/100

24% lower than Denver

vs 85/100 in Denver

Closest outdoor draw: White Sands National Park, 72.1 mi.

·walk score®

93/100

4% lower than Denver

vs 97/100 in Denver

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

13

92% fewer than Denver

vs 169 nonstops in Denver

04 · see also

neighbors of el paso on the map of tradeoffs:

compare el paso with: