Like all states, Virginia has certain places that are going on hard times. These Virginia places have an above-average percentage of people living in poverty, out of work, or not making as much as they should be.
Even as the economy continues to improve, it’s worthwhile to look at the places in each state struggling to make ends meet. So we set our sites on locating the poorest places in Virginia.
To do so, we used Saturday Night Science to analyze the newest Census data from the American Community Survey for the 62 cities in Virginia with more than 5,000 people.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Poorest Places In Virginia For 2026:
What’s the poorest city in Virginia? According to the facts, Galax is the poorest place in Virginia for 2026.
This isn’t a commentary on the people that live there or the vibrant culture and traditions of these places. Instead, it’s just a look at the facts.
For more Virginia reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Virginia
- Cheapest Places To Live In Virginia
- Most Dangerous Cities In Virginia
- The poorest states in the US
- The poorest cities in the US
The 10 Poorest Cities In Virginia For 2026
1. Galax
/10
Population: 6,726
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 4)
Median Income: $38,675 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 31.1% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 2,091
More on Galax: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Galax, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Virginia thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 6,726 people averages the 2nd lowest median household income in Virginia and the 2nd highest poverty rate. At the very least, the cost of living ranks in the bottom 15% of place in the state, so things like housing are relatively affordable.
2. Richlands
/10
Population: 5,171
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $37,154 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 30.2% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 1,561
More on Richlands: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
The second poorest city in Virginia is Richlands.
The city ranks as having the 3rd highest incidence of poverty and lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 2highest in the Old Dominion.
3. South Boston
/10
Population: 7,853
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 1)
Median Income: $44,052 (6th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 26.9% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 2,108
More on South Boston: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Placing as the third poorest city, South Boston’s median income ranks as the 6th lowest.
And that’s a sign that there’s a relatively substantial jump in the quality of the economy from second to third place on our list. The poverty rate is 26.85% and ranks near the bottom of places in the state.
But what makes up for the relatively low incomes of the city is its low cost of living. The income you do make here goes further than in most parts of the Old Dominion.
4. Blacksburg
/10
Population: 45,446
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Median Income: $50,182 (11th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 42.7% (highest)
People In Poverty: 19,405
More on Blacksburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Blacksburg ranks as the fourth poorest place in Virginia.
The town ranks as having the 11th lowest median household income and the highest incidence of poverty in the state.
That being said, there’s still a ton of cultural diversity in the city as it hosts many events throughout the year.
5. Covington
/10
Population: 5,680
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 2)
Median Income: $41,944 (5th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 25.7% (8th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,458
More on Covington: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
The fifth poorest city in Virginia is Covington.
The city ranks as having the 5th lowest median income in the state. However, an extremely low cost of living prevents a good number of folks from living in poverty as the poverty rate only ranks as the 8th highest in Virginia.
Still not the best news for Covington.
6. Danville
/10
Population: 42,214
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 2)
Median Income: $44,423 (7th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 24.6% (9th highest)
People In Poverty: 10,405
More on Danville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Danville ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Old Dominion.
It ranks as having the 9th highest incidence of poverty and the 18th highest unemployment rate.
7. Martinsville
/10
Population: 13,658
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 5)
Median Income: $46,727 (8th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 23.5% (11th highest)
People In Poverty: 3,209
More on Martinsville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Martinsville places as the seventh poorest city in Virginia.
The city of over 13,658 ranks as having the 11th highest incidence of poverty in the state. However, it has a very low cost of living which helps to pay the bills each month.
8. Marion
/10
Population: 5,670
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 3)
Median Income: $40,896 (3rd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 20.7% (18th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,173
More on Marion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Marion ranks as the eighth poorest city in Virginia.
The big issue for the town is the unemployment rate which ranks as one of the highest in the state.
9. Big Stone Gap
/10
Population: 5,162
Rank Last Year: 14 (Up 5)
Median Income: $54,581 (16th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 26.2% (6th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,354
More on Big Stone Gap: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Big Stone Gap couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Virginia; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 16th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Big Stone Gap ranks as having the 6th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Virginia.
10. Radford
/10
Population: 16,726
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 2)
Median Income: $57,348 (19th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 28.7% (4th highest)
People In Poverty: 4,793
More on Radford: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Virginia is Radford.
The city of 16,726 people ranks in the bottom 20% for both median income and poverty rate in the Old Dominion.
Methodology: How We Determined The Poorest Places In Virginia for 2026
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the poorest places is to simply the poverty rate. That is, the number of people living below a federally established level of income for a household of a certain size.
However, we don’t think that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “poorest places”. So we used Saturday Night Science to look at this set of criteria from the newly released 2020-2024 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
After we collected the data for all 62 places with more than 5,000 people in Virginia, we ranked each place from 1 to 62 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the poorest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Poor Score” with the place having the lowest overall Poor Score, Galax, crowned the “Poorest Place In Virginia For 2026”.
This report has been updated for 2026, which is our eleventh time ranking the poorest places in Virginia.
Summary: The Poorest Cities In Virginia For 2026
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the poorest places in Virginia, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Virginia.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very bottom of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the richest cities in Virginia, according to data:
-
Richest: Purcellville
2nd Richest: Falls Church
3rd Richest: Vienna
For more Virginia reading, check out:
- Richest Cities In Virginia
- Safest Places In Virginia
- Worst Cities In Virginia For 2017
- Most Expensive Places To Live In Virginia
Detailed List Of The Poorest Places To Live In Virginia
| Rank | City | Population | Poverty Rate | Median Income | People In Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Galax | 6,726 | 31.1% | $38,675 | 2,091 |
| 2 | Richlands | 5,171 | 30.2% | $37,154 | 1,561 |
| 3 | South Boston | 7,853 | 26.9% | $44,052 | 2,108 |
| 4 | Blacksburg | 45,446 | 42.7% | $50,182 | 19,405 |
| 5 | Covington | 5,680 | 25.7% | $41,944 | 1,458 |
| 6 | Danville | 42,214 | 24.6% | $44,423 | 10,405 |
| 7 | Martinsville | 13,658 | 23.5% | $46,727 | 3,209 |
| 8 | Marion | 5,670 | 20.7% | $40,896 | 1,173 |
| 9 | Big Stone Gap | 5,162 | 26.2% | $54,581 | 1,354 |
| 10 | Radford | 16,726 | 28.7% | $57,348 | 4,793 |
| 11 | Farmville | 7,774 | 20.4% | $40,966 | 1,582 |
| 12 | Pulaski | 8,893 | 21.2% | $49,491 | 1,888 |
| 13 | Wytheville | 8,202 | 21.2% | $47,270 | 1,737 |
| 14 | Petersburg | 33,537 | 21.7% | $50,698 | 7,287 |
| 15 | Hopewell | 22,959 | 21.8% | $54,729 | 5,002 |
| 16 | Harrisonburg | 51,392 | 25.7% | $62,254 | 13,212 |
| 17 | Ashland | 7,772 | 24.3% | $61,164 | 1,890 |
| 18 | Bristol | 16,849 | 17.9% | $50,404 | 3,024 |
| 19 | Buena Vista | 6,593 | 18.8% | $57,833 | 1,242 |
| 20 | Winchester | 27,913 | 21.5% | $63,974 | 5,998 |
| 21 | Roanoke | 98,355 | 18.3% | $55,378 | 18,028 |
| 22 | Abingdon | 8,330 | 15.9% | $54,544 | 1,324 |
| 23 | Emporia | 5,547 | 15.8% | $51,899 | 876 |
| 24 | Lynchburg | 79,497 | 18.6% | $57,947 | 14,786 |
| 25 | Franklin | 8,250 | 19.4% | $63,245 | 1,596 |
| 26 | Portsmouth | 97,190 | 17.3% | $60,491 | 16,852 |
| 27 | Woodstock | 5,871 | 22.1% | $76,100 | 1,295 |
| 28 | Richmond | 229,359 | 18.2% | $64,587 | 41,743 |
| 29 | Charlottesville | 45,437 | 19.6% | $74,824 | 8,928 |
| 30 | Williamsburg | 15,798 | 18.8% | $75,604 | 2,976 |
| 31 | Norfolk | 233,596 | 16.5% | $66,109 | 38,543 |
| 32 | Front Royal | 15,296 | 14.3% | $64,838 | 2,191 |
| 33 | Waynesboro | 22,841 | 11.2% | $59,994 | 2,562 |
| 34 | Newport News | 184,216 | 14.5% | $69,634 | 26,674 |
| 35 | Staunton | 25,948 | 12.4% | $65,581 | 3,220 |
| 36 | Vinton | 8,056 | 10.5% | $65,445 | 843 |
| 37 | Hampton | 137,557 | 12.7% | $69,621 | 17,497 |
| 38 | Orange | 5,066 | 14.2% | $76,370 | 716 |
| 39 | Salem | 25,618 | 10.2% | $66,725 | 2,625 |
| 40 | Strasburg | 7,214 | 7.5% | $62,464 | 538 |
| 41 | Lexington | 7,525 | 14.0% | $84,517 | 1,056 |
| 42 | Fredericksburg | 28,873 | 13.2% | $86,071 | 3,808 |
| 43 | Christiansburg | 22,720 | 11.7% | $77,147 | 2,665 |
| 44 | Culpeper | 20,794 | 12.8% | $94,721 | 2,665 |
| 45 | Warrenton | 10,176 | 9.7% | $83,331 | 983 |
| 46 | Colonial Heights | 18,352 | 7.9% | $76,505 | 1,451 |
| 47 | Bridgewater | 6,708 | 6.3% | $75,280 | 421 |
| 48 | Suffolk | 98,796 | 9.4% | $92,666 | 9,276 |
| 49 | Chesapeake | 252,583 | 9.4% | $95,373 | 23,793 |
| 50 | Virginia Beach | 456,349 | 8.6% | $92,968 | 39,200 |
| 51 | Dumfries | 5,816 | 5.0% | $82,355 | 289 |
| 52 | Fairfax | 25,026 | 9.1% | $132,348 | 2,277 |
| 53 | Alexandria | 156,976 | 7.9% | $119,681 | 12,463 |
| 54 | Manassas | 42,976 | 7.7% | $113,590 | 3,326 |
| 55 | Smithfield | 8,834 | 5.4% | $113,158 | 480 |
| 56 | Herndon | 24,672 | 8.1% | $148,000 | 1,995 |
| 57 | Manassas Park | 16,798 | 5.1% | $103,250 | 860 |
| 58 | Leesburg | 49,171 | 6.6% | $145,205 | 3,235 |
| 59 | Poquoson | 12,639 | 4.5% | $120,972 | 567 |
| 60 | Vienna | 16,412 | 5.0% | $216,953 | 825 |
| 61 | Falls Church | 14,710 | 4.0% | $143,262 | 591 |
| 62 | Purcellville | 8,973 | 4.6% | $165,121 | 415 |