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 2024:
What’s the poorest city in Virginia? According to the facts, Richlands is the poorest place in Virginia for 2024.
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 2024
1. Richlands
/10
Population: 5,266
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $35,959 (lowest)
Poverty Rate: 25.0% (6th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,315
More on Richlands: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Richlands, unfortunately, ranks as the poorest place in Virginia thanks to combination of low pay and and a lack of jobs.
The city of 5,266 people averages the lowest median household income in Virginia and the 6th 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. Wytheville
/10
Population: 8,228
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 3)
Median Income: $39,459 (5th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 27.3% (3rd highest)
People In Poverty: 2,245
More on Wytheville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The second poorest city in Virginia is Wytheville.
The city ranks as having the 3rd highest incidence of poverty and 5th lowest median household income. However, the unemployment rate ‘only’ ranks as the 22nd highest in the Old Dominion.
3. Blacksburg
/10
Population: 45,147
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $42,012 (8th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 45.1% (highest)
People In Poverty: 20,374
More on Blacksburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Placing as the third poorest city, Blacksburg’s median income ranks as the 8th 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 45.13% 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. Martinsville
/10
Population: 13,539
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Median Income: $39,127 (3rd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 24.6% (7th highest)
People In Poverty: 3,327
More on Martinsville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Martinsville ranks as the fourth poorest place in Virginia.
The town ranks as having the 3rd lowest median household income and the 7th 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. Danville
/10
Population: 42,507
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 1)
Median Income: $41,484 (7th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 25.3% (5th highest)
People In Poverty: 10,754
More on Danville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
The fifth poorest city in Virginia is Danville.
The city ranks as having the 7th 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 5th highest in Virginia.
Still not the best news for Danville.
6. Marion
/10
Population: 5,722
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 3)
Median Income: $37,337 (2nd lowest)
Poverty Rate: 20.6% (15th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,181
More on Marion: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Marion ranks as the sixth poorest place in the Old Dominion.
It ranks as having the 15th highest incidence of poverty and the 28th highest unemployment rate.
7. Radford
/10
Population: 16,379
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Median Income: $51,039 (16th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 33.8% (2nd highest)
People In Poverty: 5,534
More on Radford: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Radford places as the seventh poorest city in Virginia.
The city of over 16,379 ranks as having the 2nd 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. Galax
/10
Population: 6,687
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 2)
Median Income: $44,612 (9th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 22.4% (11th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,499
More on Galax: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Galax 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. Farmville
/10
Population: 7,647
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 7)
Median Income: $39,233 (4th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 18.9% (19th highest)
People In Poverty: 1,445
More on Farmville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
Farmville couldn’t stay out of the top ten poorest places in Virginia; it ranks number 9.
While the median income is the 4th lowest, there are a substantial number of people that live below the poverty line. Overall, Farmville ranks as having the 19th most people living in poverty of all the places we analyzed in Virginia.
10. Petersburg
/10
Population: 33,261
Rank Last Year: 15 (Up 5)
Median Income: $46,930 (12th lowest)
Poverty Rate: 22.2% (12th highest)
People In Poverty: 7,387
More on Petersburg: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living
And rounding out the top ten poorest cities in Virginia is Petersburg.
The city of 33,261 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 2024
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 2018-2022 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, Richlands, crowned the “Poorest Place In Virginia For 2024”.
This report has been updated for 2024, which is our tenth time ranking the poorest places in Virginia.
Summary: The Poorest Cities In Virginia For 2024
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: Falls Church
2nd Richest: Purcellville
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 | Richlands | 5,266 | 25.0% | $35,959 | 1,315 |
| 2 | Wytheville | 8,228 | 27.3% | $39,459 | 2,245 |
| 3 | Blacksburg | 45,147 | 45.1% | $42,012 | 20,374 |
| 4 | Martinsville | 13,539 | 24.6% | $39,127 | 3,327 |
| 5 | Danville | 42,507 | 25.3% | $41,484 | 10,754 |
| 6 | Marion | 5,722 | 20.6% | $37,337 | 1,181 |
| 7 | Radford | 16,379 | 33.8% | $51,039 | 5,534 |
| 8 | Galax | 6,687 | 22.4% | $44,612 | 1,499 |
| 9 | Farmville | 7,647 | 18.9% | $39,233 | 1,445 |
| 10 | Petersburg | 33,261 | 22.2% | $46,930 | 7,387 |
| 11 | Buena Vista | 6,639 | 21.9% | $48,783 | 1,456 |
| 12 | Harrisonburg | 51,784 | 27.2% | $56,050 | 14,100 |
| 13 | Hopewell | 23,046 | 21.3% | $50,661 | 4,913 |
| 14 | South Boston | 7,942 | 20.4% | $49,654 | 1,619 |
| 15 | Pulaski | 8,982 | 22.6% | $55,213 | 2,027 |
| 16 | Emporia | 5,680 | 17.3% | $41,442 | 983 |
| 17 | Roanoke | 99,213 | 19.1% | $51,523 | 18,959 |
| 18 | Bristol | 17,036 | 16.9% | $45,250 | 2,887 |
| 19 | Covington | 5,722 | 16.9% | $45,737 | 968 |
| 20 | Bluefield | 5,059 | 18.0% | $53,162 | 909 |
| 21 | Woodstock | 5,798 | 23.5% | $64,470 | 1,364 |
| 22 | Richmond | 227,171 | 19.5% | $59,606 | 44,230 |
| 23 | Franklin | 8,194 | 18.8% | $57,537 | 1,536 |
| 24 | Charlottesville | 46,289 | 23.6% | $67,177 | 10,924 |
| 25 | Lynchburg | 79,166 | 17.5% | $56,243 | 13,877 |
| 26 | Portsmouth | 97,384 | 17.4% | $57,154 | 16,905 |
| 27 | Big Stone Gap | 5,221 | 16.4% | $52,663 | 857 |
| 28 | Waynesboro | 22,341 | 16.1% | $52,519 | 3,605 |
| 29 | Ashland | 7,617 | 17.1% | $58,904 | 1,301 |
| 30 | Abingdon | 8,346 | 15.7% | $56,164 | 1,308 |
| 31 | Norfolk | 236,973 | 16.9% | $60,998 | 39,953 |
| 32 | Winchester | 28,103 | 16.9% | $62,495 | 4,735 |
| 33 | Fredericksburg | 28,258 | 18.0% | $83,445 | 5,094 |
| 34 | Front Royal | 15,064 | 15.5% | $62,735 | 2,333 |
| 35 | Newport News | 185,118 | 14.7% | $63,355 | 27,156 |
| 36 | Strasburg | 7,104 | 9.9% | $56,244 | 703 |
| 37 | Staunton | 25,581 | 11.4% | $59,731 | 2,926 |
| 38 | Hampton | 137,217 | 13.5% | $64,430 | 18,469 |
| 39 | Williamsburg | 15,486 | 13.7% | $66,815 | 2,113 |
| 40 | Christiansburg | 22,947 | 12.2% | $71,468 | 2,806 |
| 41 | Dumfries | 5,697 | 12.8% | $75,629 | 731 |
| 42 | Lexington | 7,346 | 16.6% | $93,651 | 1,221 |
| 43 | Vinton | 8,045 | 9.6% | $65,481 | 772 |
| 44 | Salem | 25,372 | 9.6% | $68,402 | 2,440 |
| 45 | Colonial Heights | 18,158 | 10.2% | $72,216 | 1,857 |
| 46 | Culpeper | 20,105 | 10.5% | $86,940 | 2,107 |
| 47 | Bridgewater | 6,575 | 9.5% | $72,051 | 625 |
| 48 | Smithfield | 8,625 | 12.3% | $101,081 | 1,060 |
| 49 | Suffolk | 94,856 | 9.4% | $87,758 | 8,944 |
| 50 | Virginia Beach | 457,900 | 8.0% | $87,544 | 36,769 |
| 51 | Warrenton | 10,111 | 6.9% | $83,737 | 701 |
| 52 | Fairfax | 24,242 | 10.0% | $128,708 | 2,424 |
| 53 | Chesapeake | 249,377 | 7.6% | $92,703 | 19,052 |
| 54 | Alexandria | 157,594 | 8.8% | $113,179 | 13,899 |
| 55 | Manassas Park | 17,123 | 5.1% | $91,673 | 866 |
| 56 | Herndon | 24,456 | 7.1% | $133,403 | 1,736 |
| 57 | Manassas | 42,620 | 4.7% | $110,559 | 2,020 |
| 58 | Leesburg | 48,465 | 6.2% | $132,298 | 3,029 |
| 59 | Poquoson | 12,479 | 4.5% | $114,503 | 561 |
| 60 | Vienna | 16,401 | 4.9% | $215,556 | 803 |
| 61 | Purcellville | 8,928 | 4.0% | $150,333 | 360 |
| 62 | Falls Church | 14,576 | 2.3% | $164,536 | 339 |