New Mexico vs Washington
Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more
Overall Score
Category Wins
5/10
Overall Score
Category Wins
5/10
Quick Comparison
Winner highlighted per category
Washington Edges Out New Mexico Overall
With an overall homesteading score of 64.6 vs 61.1, Washington comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.
Key differences: New Mexico offers cheaper farmland at $1,250/acre vs $4,700/acre. Washington has a longer growing season (210 vs 200 days). New Mexico has lower property taxes (0.8% vs 0.94%).
Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.
Full Data Comparison
| Data Point | New Mexico NM | Washington WA |
|---|---|---|
| Taxes & Cost | ||
| Yes | No | |
| 5.9% | — | |
| 8.09% | 9.22% | |
| 0.8% | 0.94% | |
| 97 | 112 | |
| Land & Building | ||
| $1,250 | $4,700 | |
| Yes (Statewide) | Yes (Statewide) | |
| Permitted with local approval; zoning permissive in many areas | Permitted with zoning approval; increasingly allowed | |
| Climate & Growing | ||
| 4b-10a | 8a-10a | |
| 200 | 210 | |
| 24" | 100" | |
| 5 | 7 | |
| 8 | 5 | |
| 3 | 1 | |
| Water & Energy | ||
| Permitted | Permitted | |
| 5.9 | 3.8 | |
| Yes | Yes | |
| Laws & Freedom | ||
| Minimal | Minimal | |
| 8 | 6 | |
| Strong | Strong | |
| Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing | Permitted for raw milk operations with licensing | |
| Yes | Yes | |
| Safety & Healthcare | ||
| 742 | 388 | |
| 52% | 44% | |
| Demographics & Community | ||
| 17 | 106 | |
| 28% | 17% | |
| 75% | 89% | |
| Business | ||
| #34 | #22 | |
| $0/yr | $180/yr | |
| 4.3% | 3.9% | |
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