Ruidoso is a somewhat small village located in the state of New Mexico. With a population of 7,796 people and four associated neighborhoods, Ruidoso is the 29th largest community in New Mexico.

Ruidoso real estate is some of the most expensive in New Mexico, although Ruidoso house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.

A relatively large number of people in Ruidoso telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 11.02% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

Another notable thing is that Ruidoso is a major vacation destination. Much of the village’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Ruidoso’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live.

It is a fairly quiet village because there are relatively few of those groups of people who have a tendency to be noisy. (Children, for example, often can't help themselves from being noisy, and being parents ourselves, we know!) Ruidoso has relatively few families with children living at home, and is quieter because of it. Renters and college students, for their own reasons, can also be noisy. Ruidoso has few renters and college students. But the biggest reason it is quieter in Ruidoso than in most places in America, is that there are just simply fewer people living here. If you think trees make good neighbors, Ruidoso may be for you.

Residents of the village have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 16.73 minutes getting to work every day.

The education level of Ruidoso citizens is a little higher than the average for US cities and towns: 24.23% of adults in Ruidoso have at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Ruidoso in 2022 was $28,049, which is middle income relative to New Mexico, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $112,196 for a family of four. However, Ruidoso contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Ruidoso is an extremely ethnically-diverse village. The people who call Ruidoso home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Ruidoso residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Ruidoso also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 31.00% of the village’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Ruidoso include Irish, German, English, European, and French.

The most common language spoken in Ruidoso is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Italian.