State profile

Virginia

Population, economy, housing, and demographics · ACS 2020–2024

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At a glance

Total population
8,705,170
Median household income
$93,170
People below poverty
9.9%
Median home value
$383,700

Census Insights

  • The share of people living below the poverty level was 9.9%, the 7th lowest among states.
  • Financial pressure eased as the poverty rate dropped 13.9% while median household income rose 8.3% over the last decade.
  • Professional, scientific, and management jobs were highly concentrated, employing 16.8% of workers, the 2nd highest share among states.
  • The number of households grew from 3,041,710 to 3,365,732, a 10.7% increase over the 10-year period.
  • The share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher was 42.2%, the 8th highest among states.
  • Remote work surged, with the share of people working from home rising from 4.6% to 18.3% over the last decade.
  • Health coverage improved significantly as the uninsured rate fell from 12.1% to 6.9% over the 10-year comparison period.

Income

The median income of households in Virginia was $93,170. An estimated 4.2% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 17.7% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 4.2
$10,000 to $14,999 2.7
$15,000 to $24,999 5.2
$25,000 to $34,999 5.7
$35,000 to $49,999 8.8
$50,000 to $74,999 14.3
$75,000 to $99,999 12.1
$100,000 to $149,999 18.1
$150,000 to $199,999 11.1
$200,000 or more 17.7

Median Earnings for Full-Time Year-Round Workers by Sex in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Dollars
Male 74915
Female 60771

An estimated 79.2% of households received earnings. An estimated 29.9% of households received Social Security and an estimated 26.8 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $25,098. These income sources are not mutually exclusive; that is, some households received income from more than one source.

Proportion of Households with Various Income Sources in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 79.2
Social Security 29.9
Retirement income 26.8
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 4.1
Cash public assistance income 2.3

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 9.9 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 12.3% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 8.8% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 9.3% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 9.9
Children under 18 years below poverty 12.3
People 65 years old and over below poverty 8.8
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 9.3

In 2020-2024, 9.1 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 49.4% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 38.1% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 36% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Virginia in 2020-2024, 93.1% had health insurance coverage and 6.9% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 73.2% and public coverage was 33.6%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 4.7%.


In 2020-2024, Virginia had a total population of 8,705,170 - 4,404,435 (50.6%) females and 4,300,735 (49.4%) males. The median age was 39 years. An estimated 21.7% of the population was under 18 years, 33.6% was 19 to 44 years, 25.3% was 45 to 64 years, and 16.7 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Virginia in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 249268 240192
5 to 9 268023 250883
10 to 14 280618 267178
15 to 19 293839 279324
20 to 24 290989 277178
25 to 29 292100 282475
30 to 34 301246 298106
35 to 39 300846 300229
40 to 44 289861 290341
45 to 49 263667 267801
50 to 54 275178 277920
55 to 59 274865 286209
60 to 64 268538 284553
65 to 69 225207 250161
70 to 74 178155 207749
75 to 79 122274 153488
80 to 84 71032 95892
85 and over 55029 94756

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 60.2% were White; 18.6% were Black or African American; 10% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 6.9% were Asian; 7.3% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 9.5% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 11% of the people in Virginia were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 58.4% of the people in Virginia were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 3,365,732 households in Virginia. The average household size was 2.52 people.

Married-couple households made up 48.7% of the households in Virginia while cohabiting couple households made up 6.4% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 27.5% of all households, while 17.4% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 12.4% of households were male householders living alone, and 16.1% were female householders living alone, for a total of 28.5% of all households.

In Virginia, 30.2% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 30.9% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 48.7
Cohabiting Couples 6.4
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
17.4
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
27.5

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 51.3% of males and 47.6% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 35.9 30.7
Now married, except separated 51.3 47.6
Separated 1.7 2.1
Widowed 2.7 8.2
Divorced 8.5 11.6

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Virginia, 168,148 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 33.9% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 86.9% of the people living in Virginia were U.S. natives. 48.8% of the Virginia population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 13.1% of Virginia residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 56.6% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 65.4 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Virginia come from different parts of the world. The bar graph below displays the percentage of foreign-born from each world region of birth in 2020-2024 for Virginia.

Region of Birth for the Foreign-Born Population in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Latin America 36.3
Asia 41.8
Europe 9.2
Africa 11.1
Northern America 1.2
Oceania 0.3

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Virginia in 2020-2024, 17.4 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 7.9% of people at least five years old; 6.2% reported that they did not speak English "very well."

Percentage of the Population 5 years and over who Speak a Language other than English in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 7.9
Other Indo-European languages 3.9
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 3.8
Other languages 1.9

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 86.9 % of the people at least one year old living in Virginia were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 86.9
Different house, same county 4.6
Different county, same state 4.7
Different state 3.1
Abroad 0.7

Education

In 2020-2024, 91.6 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 42.2% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 8.4% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Virginia was 2,095,439 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 111,941 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 1,380,448. College or graduate school enrollment was 603,050.

Educational Attainment of People in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 8.4
High school diploma or equivalency 23.9
Some college, no degree 17.7
Associate's degree 7.8
Bachelor's degree 23.7
Graduate or professional degree 18.5

Disability

In Virginia, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 12.5 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 4.8% of people under 18 years old, to 10.2% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 31.1% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Virginia, 60.8 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 34.6% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 74.5% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 20.5% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 4.9 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 3,185,657 74.5
Federal, state, or local government workers 874,827 20.5
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 210,463 4.9

Industries

In 2020-2024, the civilian employed population 16 years and older in Virginia worked in the following industries:

Percent by Industry in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 0.9
Construction 6.5
Manufacturing 7
Wholesale trade 1.6
Retail trade 9.8
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 4.8
Information 1.8
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 6.5
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 16.8
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 22.3
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 7.9
Other Services, except public administration 5.3
Public administration 8.9

Occupations

Occupations for the Civilian Employed Population 16 Years and over in Virginia in 2020-2024

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 2,088,864 48.8
Service occupations 658,942 15.4
Sales and office occupations 770,366 18
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 320,491 7.5
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 439,048 10.3

Commuting to Work

An estimated 67.6% of Virginia workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 8% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 27.3 minutes to get to work.

Percent of Workers 16 and over Commuting by Mode in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 67.6
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 8
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 2.3
Walked 2.1
Other means 1.7
Worked from home 18.3

In 2020-2024, Virginia had a total of 3,684,756 housing units. Of these housing units, 72.6% were single-family houses either not attached to any other structure or attached to one or more structures (commonly referred to as "townhouses" or "row houses"). 23% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 4.3% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 72.6
Apartments in multi-unit structures 23
Mobile homes 4.3
Boat, RV, van, etc 0

11.6% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 7% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Virginia was 6 rooms, and of these housing units 67.1% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Virginia had 3,365,732 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 319,024 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 67.3% while renters occupied 32.7%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.62 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.29.

4.7% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 9.6% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 6.1% and another 25.5% had three or more vehicles available for use.

The following chart provides the primary fuel used to heat houses in Virginia:

House Heating Fuel Used in Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 36.6
Electricity 57.5
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 3.2
All other fuels 2.1
No fuel used 0.6

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Virginia was $383,700.

Of the owner-occupied households, 66.9 % had a mortgage. 33.1% owned their houses "free and clear," that is without a primary mortgage or loan on the house. The median monthly housing costs for owners with a mortgage was $2,127 and for owners without a mortgage it was $589.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Virginia was $1,579. Gross rent includes the monthly contract rent and any monthly payments made for electricity, gas, water and sewer, and any other fuels to heat the house.