South · coastal · ~35 mi from San Juan
Living in Arroyo
Residents live in a compact coastal town that functions as part of the greater Guayama metropolitan area, between the towns of Guayama and Patillas.
How Arroyo sits among Puerto Rico’s 78 towns: every figure against the median town, with its source. Visiting instead? Things to do in Arroyo.
Housing and money
Median rent in Arroyo runs 12% below the median of the 78 towns (13th lowest of 78 towns).
- Median rent
- $472/momedian town $534 · 13th lowest of 78
- Median home value
- $89,900median town $115,700 · 6th lowest of 78
- Median household income
- $21,186/yrmedian town $24,070 · 16th lowest of 78
- Income per person
- $14,862median town $14,811
- Homes owner-occupied
- 76%median town 71.1%
- Homes vacant
- 20%median town 20.3%
- Below the poverty line
- 52%median town 44.1%
- Typical home built
- 1977median year
For scale: the U.S. median rent is $1,413 and household income $80,734; Puerto Rico's, island-wide, are $578 and $26,297. Full cost-of-living comparison.
Work and getting around
The typical commute is 28 minutes, 1 minute longer than the median of the 78 towns.
- Typical commute
- 28 minmedian town 27 min · 37th longest of 78
- Work from home
- 4.9%median town 4.5%
- Commute by transit
- 0.0%median town 0.3%
- Unemployment
- 7.3%median town 10.5%
- Households with broadband
- 86%median town 80.6% · 17th highest of 78
- To San Juan
- ~35 miNext door: Guayama and Patillas
People
- Population
- 15,341Census estimate, 2020–2024 · 15 sq mi (38.9 km²)
- Residents per sq mi
- 1,020median town 763 · 29th densest of 78
- Median age
- 43.4median town 44.9
- Bachelor's degree or higher
- 25%median town 24.1% · 32nd highest of 78
Daily life
What is mapped in Arroyo today: counts, then per 10,000 residents so a small town and San Juan read on the same scale.
- Schools
- 149.1 per 10k · median town 6.3
- Supermarkets
- 10.7 per 10k · median town 0.7
- Parks
- 106.5 per 10k · median town 4.3
- Restaurants
- 21.3 per 10k · median town 2.4
- Beaches
- 3coastal town
Counts from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL): what volunteers have mapped, not an official register. Places our guide recommends in Arroyo.
Water, power and safety
- Water. Arroyo is not on an AAA rationing calendar. Reservoir levels & the rationing calendar
- Power. LUMA reports outages by sector; the live tracker shows how many sectors in Arroyo are out right now. Outages by town
- Safety. 24.1 reported violent crimes per 10,000 residents in 2025, among the highest of the 78 towns (1 homicide that year). Every town, with context
- Hurricanes. Every town prepares the same way; the Puerto Rico version of the checklist starts from a grid and water system that take longer to come back. Prepare
Beach water
Within limits: Balneario Punta Guilarte. Last tested Oct 6, over 2 weeks ago.
Beach water qualitySources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates, 2020–2024 (small towns carry wide margins of error); OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), mapped as of Oct 4, 2026; Puerto Rico Police Bureau, SAEC Type I, 2025 full year; AAA: Plan de Interrupciones Programadas.