Population
Sterling Heights
133,473
Rio Rancho
106,533
Median Income
Sterling Heights
$78,429
Rio Rancho
$85,755
Home Value
Sterling Heights
$260,700
Rio Rancho
$273,300
Rent
Sterling Heights
$1,267
Rio Rancho
$1,481
Crime Rate
Sterling Heights
2.31
Rio Rancho
3.18
Cost of Living
Sterling Heights
122.4
Rio Rancho
130.8
Avg Temp
Sterling Heights
N/A
Rio Rancho
N/A
Unemployment
Sterling Heights
6.2%
Rio Rancho
4.8%
How Similar Are Sterling Heights & Rio Rancho?
Rio Rancho is Sterling Heights's #15 most similar city
4 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Sterling Heights
133,473
Rio Rancho
106,533
Sterling Heights has a 20% larger population than Rio Rancho.
Violent Crime
Sterling Heights
2.31
Rio Rancho
3.18
Rio Rancho has a 27% higher violent crime than Sterling Heights.
Property Crime
Sterling Heights
10.42
Rio Rancho
13.39
Rio Rancho has a 22% higher property crime than Sterling Heights.
Political Leaning
Sterling Heights
55.9%
Rio Rancho
46.0%
Sterling Heights leans Republican while Rio Rancho leans Democratic.
Unemployment
Sterling Heights
6.2%
Rio Rancho
4.8%
Sterling Heights has a 22% higher unemployment than Rio Rancho.
Median Income
Sterling Heights
$78,429
Rio Rancho
$85,755
Both cities have similar median income — just a 9% difference.
Home Values
Sterling Heights
$260,700
Rio Rancho
$273,300
Both cities have similar home values — just a 5% difference.
Education
Sterling Heights
22.4%
Rio Rancho
23.1%
Both cities have similar education — just a 3% difference.
Demographics
Sterling Heights
78.9%
Rio Rancho
61.7%
Sterling Heights has a 22% higher demographics than Rio Rancho.
Cost of Living
Sterling Heights
122.4
Rio Rancho
130.8
Both cities have similar cost of living — just a 6% difference.
4 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Sterling Heights and Rio Rancho share several key characteristics.
At a Glance
0
Sterling Heights
0
Rio Rancho
Sterling Heights leads in 3 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Sterling Heights leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDSterling Heights scores 106.9 on the transportation index (100 = national avg) vs 122.2 in Rio Rancho. Sterling Heights has a living wage (1 adult) of $53,843 vs $57,558 in Rio Rancho (6% lower). Sterling Heights has a living wage (family of 4) of $127,266 vs $136,045 in Rio Rancho (6% lower).
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market — Rio Rancho leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSRio Rancho has a median property tax of $2,104 vs $3,559 in Sterling Heights (69% lower). Rio Rancho has a single-family homes of 90.0% compared to 76.2% in Sterling Heights. Sterling Heights has a median rent of $1,267 vs $1,481 in Rio Rancho (14% lower).
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSRio Rancho has a poverty rate of 7.8% compared to 10.6% in Sterling Heights. Sterling Heights: 68,559 vs Rio Rancho: 52,665 for labor force. Rio Rancho has a unemployment rate of 4.8% compared to 6.2% in Sterling Heights.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Sterling Heights leads
Source: FBI UCRSterling Heights has a violent crime clearance of 49.2% compared to 21.2% in Rio Rancho. Sterling Heights has a murder rate (per 1k) of 0.01 compared to 0.07 in Rio Rancho. Rio Rancho has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.08 compared to 0.15 in Sterling Heights.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAvg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauSterling Heights has a high school diploma or higher of 42.4% compared to 39.1% in Rio Rancho. Rio Rancho has a bachelor's degree or higher of 23.1% compared to 22.4% in Sterling Heights.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSSterling Heights has a population of 133,473, about 1.3x the size of Rio Rancho (106,533). Rio Rancho skews younger with a median age of 39.0 vs 41.5.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Sterling Heights
Rio Rancho
Healthcare — Rio Rancho leads
Source: CMS Hospital CompareRio Rancho: 2.7 vs Sterling Heights: 2.0 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Sterling Heights leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSSterling Heights has a bicycle of 0.4% compared to 0.2% in Rio Rancho. Rio Rancho has a public transit of 0.7% compared to 0.5% in Sterling Heights. Sterling Heights: 22 min vs Rio Rancho: 26 min for mean commute time.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Sterling Heights, MI
Compare Sterling Heights against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.