States That Border Mexico: A Comprehensive Guide to the US-Mexico Border

The border between Mexico and the United States not only stands out for its economic and political interactions, but also for the social and cultural processes that are lived in the area; the border dynamics that are lived in these two countries are in turn the reflection of two cultures that coexist in the same continent, the Anglo-Saxon and Latino. Here we will tell you States that border Mexico.

Before developing States that border Mexico it is important to establish what is a border and what is its importance? The border is a line that marks the limit between the territory of a State (land, sea and air) over which it exercises its sovereignty, therefore, the function of borders is to separate the territory of a State that is subject to the jurisdiction of a country with another State that is not, the border has great economic, geographic and cultural importance, this limitation seeks to protect its citizens from foreigners.

Mexico shares border limits with three countries, Guatemala, Belize, and the most intentionally known as the United States, the border to the north (USA) is divided in almost half of its territorial extension by the Bravo River, which is located in the northeast region, while the northwest region, which is a desert and semi-desert area, extends to Tijuana.

The States that border Mexico are California, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico, bordering Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Nueva Leon, and Tamaulipas.

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This is all you need to know about States that border Mexico

The border of Mexico with the United States is the territorial space of greatest geopolitical importance in all America, this is due to the migratory relevance it has, that is why we will tell you below what are the  States that border Mexico:

California

One of the States that border Mexico with the United States is California, which is located in the western region, bordering Baja California to the south, Nevada to the east, the Colorado River to the southeast, Oregon to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is the third largest state, behind Alaska and Texas, and stands out for its avant-garde and creative culture, with important theaters, museums, street art, dance and music.

The border of Tijuana in Baja California borders with Imperial Beach, which is located in San Diego County, California, also has key border crossings such as San Ysidro and Otay Mesa, the San Ysidro International Border Crossing, which is a border port between the United States and Mexico that is located between the city of San Ysidro and Tijuana.

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The San Ysidro border crossing is the largest international crossing in the world and has approximately 25 million crossings in cars per year and more than 7 million crossings of people on foot, its cultural and economic importance is outstanding, because both Mexicans and Americans use this border area to develop their economy, which in turn brings contact between the Latin and Anglo-Saxon culture, which makes both border cities beget cosmopolitan cities.

Also of great importance is Otay Mesa, another international border crossing that limits San Diego from Tijuana, this region is located in a residential and industrial area and also has a great economic and cultural movement between Mexico and the United States.

Arizona

Arizona is located in the western part of the United States, bordered on the south by Sonora, on the north by Utah, on the west by the Colorado River, on the east by New Mexico and on the northeast by Colorado. It is the sixth largest state, behind Alaska, Texas, California, Montana and New Mexico.

The state’s culture is characterized by crafts (basketry, jewelry, pottery and textiles) from native communities, which emphasize the importance of nature (land, water and air).

The cultural and economic interaction between Arizona and Sonora is also very relevant, as these communities share common traditions such as food, beverages, dance styles, music, books and artistic creations. It is also worth mentioning that the economic exchange between both border areas is evident in the crossings of their citizens and this generates an approximate annual income of 181 million dollars.

The most important border zone of Arizona and Sonora is Nogales, which is 70 miles south of Tucson and 180 miles south of Phoenix, this community communicates with its sister city, Heroica Nogales located in Sonora, this border crossing is considered dangerous by Mexican and U.S. authorities and is that migrants who decide to cross (illegal) are often victims of the inhospitable climate and transnational criminal trafficking networks.

New Mexico

Another of the States that border Mexico is New Mexico, which is located in the southwestern United States, this state is bordered on the southwest by the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora, on the southeast by Texas, on the west by Arizona, on the north by Colorado and on the northwest by Utah.

New Mexico is culturally famous for its hot air balloon festival, ruins, art and intriguing architecture. In addition to this, it stands out for its multiculturalism, since it has Anglo-Saxon, Latino and native customs, so its cultural and economic exchange is quite important.

Regarding its border crossings with Mexico, New Mexico only borders the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It has three border crossings which are Antelope Wells- El Berrendo, which is located on State Highway 81, Antelope Wells, New Mexico (El Berrendo- Janos Highway, El Berrendo, Chihuahua). There is also Columbus- Puerto Palomas on State Highway 11, Columbus (in Chihuahua at Calzada 5 de Mayo, Puerto Palomas) and the best known is the Santa Teresa- San Jeronimo border crossing, on NM 136 (Pete Domenici Boulevard), Santa Teresa, New Mexico, while in Chihuahua it is on Mexico Federal Highway 2, San Jeronimo.

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Texas

Texas is another of the States that border Mexico, which is located in the south of the United States and is bordered to the southeast by the Gulf of Mexico, to the southeast by the Rio Grande River (States of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nueva Leon and Tamaulipas), to the west by New Mexico, to the north by Oklahoma, to the northeast by Arkansas and to the east by Louisiana.

In terms of culture, Texas is one of the richest States that border Mexico, and the Anglo-Saxon, native and Latino cultures have marked the development of its own identity. It is important to mention that the Hispanic influence in Texas is undeniable and can be seen in many areas of the daily life of its inhabitants, features that are typical of Latinos, as in its architecture and cuisine, the Hispanic influence is so deeply rooted that Texans celebrate popular traditions of Mexico as the 5th of May (Mexico’s victories over France) and the Day of the Dead.

It is also important to highlight the economic activities between Texas and Mexico and there is a great commercial and human exchange between Mexico and Texas. In addition, this amounted in the year 2021 to 231.1 billion.

On the other hand, Texas shares 1,254 miles of border with Mexico and is linked by 28 international bridges, where 25 border crossings allow commercial, vehicular and pedestrian traffic while 2 are dams, and 1 is a hand-pulled ferry.

The most important border crossings are those of El Paso (in Chihuahua) which specifically contains 4 border crossings (in El Paso), Laredo, which is located in Nueva Leon and Brownsville in Tamaulipas which has 3 border crossings (in Brownsville). Another one of importance but with less affluence is the Amistad Dam in Coahuila.

Economic Impact

The States that border Mexico have a great commercial impact with the Latin American country, the most reliable proof of this is that Mexico is the second commercial partner of the United States and the first destination of exports from California, Arizona and Texas, in addition to this, it is the second market for 20 states.

It should also be noted that around 6 million employees in the United States depend on trade with Mexico and approximately 1 million dollars are traded every minute between the two countries. Industries and businesses that depend on cross-border trade between the United States and Mexico include the automotive, agricultural and electronics industries.

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Also noteworthy is the employment and labor market between the United States and Mexico, as States that border Mexico have a significant migrant labor force, including jobs in manufacturing, material handling, construction, transportation, maintenance and service occupations.

Border tourism

Tourism between States that border Mexico and the Latin American country is massive and many Americans prefer to visit the Mexican tourist states before visiting other areas of their country or other countries with greater travel difficulties.

In addition to this, commercial travel between both countries is massive, which has brought with it a rich cultural exchange that has led the States that border Mexico to consume food from Mexico, listen to their traditional music and celebrate some of their customs such as Day of the Dead, May 5th, Thanksgiving and Black Friday.

Border security and immigration

Border security and immigration between the United States and Mexico is a concurrent issue among politicians because it is considered the most dangerous land migration route in the world, and it was reported that approximately 686 migrants died or disappeared in the year 2022.

One of the most dangerous borders between the United States and Mexico is Matamoros (Tamaulipas), specifically on the San Fernando highway, which is controlled by organized crime. There is also the illegal border route between Arizona and Sonora, this border area is considered extremely dangerous because immigrants must cross the desert, facing organized crime, animals, dehydration and lack of food.

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On the other hand, the safest border crossing between Mexico and the United States is the Colombia Border Bridge, which is located on the border between Laredo (Texas) and Nuevo Laredo (Tamaulipas) and takes approximately 15 minutes to cross, while other crossings can take from 3 to 6 hours.

Do you already know which are the States that border Mexico? Tell us, have you ever crossed any of the border crossings between Mexico and the United States?