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Cost of living-Don't know. Maybe Tucson is cheaper?
Weather-I'd give Albuquerque a slight edge.
Downtown-This one is a tie.
Dining-Tucson barely wins here.
Transit system-Albuquerque has better transit.
Entertainment-Tucson wins.
Which of these two larger cities is better to live in?
I have been to both several times but never lived in either city.
I prefer Albuquerque far, far more over Tucson.
Cost of Living: Albuquerque and Tucson have similar cost of living.
Albuquerque and Tucson are one of the few cities with a 500,000 people or more population that have small apartments that are less then 500 dollars a month.
Housing prices are lower in Albuquerque. Albuquerque and it's suburbs are both fairly affordable. Tucson is a very inexpensive city with rather expensive suburbs that cater to well-off snowbirds
Weather: Albuquerque has a chilly winter, but it warms up quickly in the spring with a nice summer
Tucson has a mild winter but it does get below freezing frequently with a very warm summer
Downtown: Albuquerque has a much more active downtown and much nicer adjacent areas along Central Avenue
Tucson has a very small downtown for such a large city. I was not impressed at all, very unvibrant.
Transit: Albuquerque has very good transit with rapid transit routes that run frequently and commuter rail.
Tucson has an average bus system with mediocre bus service that runs late at least.
Entertainment: Albuquerque in my opinion wins this one.
I think overall Albuquerque by itself is a much nicer city. It has a much lower poverty rate, much more middle-class and is much cleaner and well-run then Tucson.
I find the population in Albuquerque to be much more open-minded also and people seem happier. Tucson has some friendly retirees but overall I found Tucson to have very rude and unfriendly residents.
Tucson proper is a collection of social problems, poverty, rampant drug-use and alcoholism. They do have some very, very nice retiree oriented suburbs though such as Oro Valley.
Albuquerque has a reputation but I found the city overall to be far cleaner and more orderly then I expected. It really has a relatively low poverty rate and large middle-class compared to most American cities.
Even though there are parts of Albuquerque that are rough and tumble, it is far from the "Breaking Brad" stereotype.
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