Quay County, New Mexico

Quay County population, land area and income

Quay County had 8,403 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 2,874.0 square miles of land. It ranks 26th of 33 in New Mexico by population and 23rd by land area. That works out to 2.9 people per square mile, below the US average of 96.3, and in the bottom quarter nationally.

The median county-equivalent in New Mexico has 26,428 residents, so Quay County has 32% of the typical county's population.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $43,312 is in the bottom quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Quay County's population changed since 2020

Quay County lost 307 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 3.5%. That ranks 29th of 33 in New Mexico for growth. The median New Mexico county changed by -1.3%, and the state as a whole by +0.5%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Quay County recorded 290 births and 648 deaths, a natural change of -358. Net international migration added -2 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to +18. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 358 people.

Where Quay County is

The Census internal point of Quay County is at 35.107000, -103.548100. It sits in UTM zone 13N. The map shades New Mexico's 33 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Quay County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Quay County

One incorporated place of 1,000+ people has residents in Quay County, 5,058 people together, or 60% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Quay County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Tucumcari with 5,058.

Counties bordering Quay County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 10 neighbors for Quay County, including 3 across a state line. The most populous is Curry County, NM, with 47,156 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Curry County

  47,156 people

  39 mi SSE

• San Miguel County

  26,428 people

  75 mi WNW

• Roosevelt County

  18,713 people

  75 mi S

• TX

  Deaf Smith County, TX

  18,495 people

  54 mi ESE

• TX

  Hartley County, TX

  4,996 people

  73 mi NE

• Guadalupe County

  4,385 people

  72 mi WSW

• Union County

  3,926 people

  96 mi N

• TX

  Oldham County, TX

  1,823 people

  57 mi ENE

• De Baca County

  1,657 people

  70 mi SW

• Harding County

  635 people

  55 mi NNW

Distance to Santa Fe and the nearest big city

Santa Fe is 140.5 miles WNW of Quay County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Amarillo, TX (population 203,729), 97.1 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Clovis, NM (population 37,555), 50.3 miles away.

Quay County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Quay County is 35037: state code 35 for New Mexico plus county code 037. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $43,312.