City comparison
Amarillo, TX is about 350 miles (550 km) from El Paso, TX in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 450 miles, or about 7 h 15 min behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Amarillo, TX to El Paso, TX takes about 42 min, covering roughly 350 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
El Paso has a population of 677,181, vs 200,360 in Amarillo — about 3.4× larger by population. By land area, El Paso covers about 260 sq mi vs 105 sq mi for Amarillo.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Amarillo | El Paso | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $997/mo | $976/mo | 2.2% higher in Amarillo |
| Median home value | $172,700 | $159,300 | 8.4% higher in Amarillo |
| Median household income | $60,628 | $55,710 | 8.8% higher in Amarillo |
| Groceries index | 94.2 | 94.2 | ≈ equal |
| Utilities index | 84.5 | 83.7 | 1.0% higher in Amarillo |
| Transportation index | 96.6 | 96.6 | ≈ equal |
| Healthcare index | 96.1 | 96.1 | ≈ equal |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Amarillo, you'd need $96,704 in El Paso to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
El Paso, TX is about 3.3% cheaper overall than Amarillo, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 9% higher in Amarillo than in El Paso. If you earn $80,000 in Amarillo, you'd need about $77,363 in El Paso to keep the same standard of living.