Hermosillo's economy has been increasingly oriented toward trade with the United States since the 1980s, owing in large part to an automobile-assembly plant and the growth of light-industry maquiladoras (maquiladora) (export-oriented assembly plants) producing clothing, automobile parts, electronics, and processed foods. In addition to its industrial and administrative functions, Hermosillo is a winter resort and the site of the University of Sonora (1938). It is also a market and service centre for nearby copper mines and farmlands where cattle are raised and irrigated crops of fruit, wheat, cotton, corn (maize), and beans are grown.

Rapid population growth has accompanied the city's industrial development, and modern buildings now contrast with those of Spanish colonial design. Major highways and railroads link Hermosillo with the border cities of Mexicali, Baja California, and Nogales, Arizona, to the north and with distant Guadalajara and Mexico City to the southeast. Hermosillo also has an international airport. Pop. (2000) 545,928.