El Paso vs Odessa
The short version
- El Paso is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 4% lower than in the Odessa area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $184,500 in El Paso and $223,100 in Odessa.
- Households earn more in Odessa ($73,472 vs $59,745 median).
- Odessa is growing faster: +7.2% since 2020 vs +0.6%.
Side by side
| El Paso, TX | Odessa, TX | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 683,012 | 122,707 |
| Growth since 2020 | +0.6% | +7.2% |
| People per square mile | 2,639 | 2,358 |
| Median age | 34.5 | 31.1 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 28% | 19% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $59,745 | $73,472 |
| Median home value | $184,500 | $223,100 |
| Home value to income | 3.1× | 3.0× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,073 | $1,315 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 89.9 | 93.9 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 71.2 | 89.7 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $67,400 | $70,400 |
| Homeowners | 61% | 60% |
| Top state income tax | None | None |
| Combined sales tax | 8.2% | 8.2% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 23.4 | 22.4 |
| Work from home | 9% | 3% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 0% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6% | 5.9% |
| Poverty rate | 18.4% | 16.2% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 59° / 35° | 59° / 33° |
| July high / low | 96° / 73° | 96° / 73° |
| Precipitation per year | 9 in | 14 in |
| Snowfall per year | 3 in | 4 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 117 | 115 |
| Nights below freezing | 42 | 58 |
| Comfortable months | 4 | 3 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively High | Relatively Moderate |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 95.5 | 82.8 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 18% | 72% |
| Home prices, past year | +2.2% | +0.1% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +48% | +24.8% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: El Paso: March to April and October to November. Odessa: March to April and October.
Full monthly tables: El Paso weather by month and Odessa weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $67,400 in El Paso and $70,400 in Odessa. Moving from El Paso to Odessa, you would need about $78,300 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between El Paso and Odessa
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from El Paso and Odessa.
Which would you pick?
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