The museum features art of the Southwest and its global influences, as well as 400 years of Albuquerque history with permanent installations and special exhibitions of national and international origin.

[3] In 1975, voters approved a bond issue to fund construction of a new, permanent location on the site of a former truck terminal in Old Town.

The museum also hosts changing exhibits, a massive photo archive, art galleries, and maintains an outdoor sculpture garden on the grounds.

The Albuquerque Museum also operates tours for a late 18th-century house in Corrales, New Mexico, called Casa San Ysidro.

The house features a recreation of a 19th-century rancho, including a family chapel, a central plazuela and an enclosed corral area.