SOC 19-2012 · Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations · May 2025

How much do Physicists make in Las Cruces, NM?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Physicists in Las Cruces, NM is $112,400. The 10th percentile is $73,920 and the 90th percentile is $168,780. Employment is 30.

Median annual wage

$112,400

10th percentile
$73,920
25th percentile
$84,990
Median
$112,400
75th percentile
$144,040
90th percentile
$168,780
Mean
$120,260

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

A transit bus driver standing beside a bus at a rest stop in Denali
Denali transit bus driver Gary at Teklanika Rest Stop, August 29, 2019. Photograph by Emily Mesner, National Park Service. Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Percentile spread

For Physicists, the published 10th percentile is $73,920 and the 90th percentile is $168,780. The difference is $94,860, which is 84.4% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $84,990 to the 75th at $144,040, covers $59,050.

The mean annual wage is $120,260, which sits above the median of $112,400. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Las Cruces, NM median is 34.7% lower than the national median of $172,250 for Physicists. In 2024 national prices the local median is $124,595, which is 27.7% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 32% lower than the New Mexico median of $165,340.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Las Cruces, NM is 90.212, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $112,400 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Physicists at $124,595 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

One other metropolitan area within 200 miles publishes a annual median for Physicists. Las Cruces, NM ranks 2nd of 2 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

  • Albuquerque, NM is 193 miles away, with a median of $165,340 and employment of 330. That median is 47.1% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $173,048, against $124,595 here.

Employment share

Physicists accounts for 0.04% of wage-and-salary employment in Las Cruces, NM (30 of 80,000). Nationally the occupation is 0.01% of employment (20,430 of 155,495,730). The local share is 2.85 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in Las Cruces, NM · Physicists by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Physicists make in Las Cruces, NM?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Physicists in Las Cruces, NM is $112,400. The 10th percentile is $73,920 and the 90th percentile is $168,780. Employment is 30.

How does that compare with the national median for Physicists?

The local median is 34.7% lower than the national median of $172,250.

What is Physicists pay in Las Cruces, NM after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Las Cruces, NM is 90.212, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $112,400 is $124,595. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Las Cruces, NM compare with nearby metros for Physicists?

Albuquerque, NM is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 193 miles away, at $165,340. Las Cruces, NM ranks 2nd of 2 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.