County profile

Fairfax County

Virginia · ACS 2020–2024

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Latest estimates

At a glance

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

Total population
1,147,837
Median household income
$153,637
People below poverty
5.9%
Median home value
$732,800

Income

The median income of households in Fairfax County, Virginia was $153,637. An estimated 2.3% of households had income below $10,000 a year and 36.3% had income of $200,000 or more.

Household Income in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than $10,000 2.3
$10,000 to $14,999 1.2
$15,000 to $24,999 2.2
$25,000 to $34,999 2.8
$35,000 to $49,999 4.7
$50,000 to $74,999 8.3
$75,000 to $99,999 9.6
$100,000 to $149,999 17.8
$150,000 to $199,999 14.8
$200,000 or more 36.3

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

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Dollars
Male 112965
Female 89976

An estimated 85.8% of households received earnings. An estimated 23.6% of households received Social Security and an estimated 25.1 % of households received retirement income other than Social Security. The average income from Social Security was $28,644. 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 Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Earnings 85.8
Social Security 23.6
Retirement income 25.1
Supplemental Security Income (SSI) 2.3
Cash public assistance income 1.6

Poverty and Participation in Government Programs

In 2020-2024, 5.9 % of people were in poverty. An estimated 7.2% of children under 18 were below the poverty level, compared with 5.2% of people 65 years old and over. An estimated 5.7% of people 18 to 64 years were below the poverty level.

Poverty Rates in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
People in poverty 5.9
Children under 18 years below poverty 7.2
People 65 years old and over below poverty 5.2
People 18 to 64 years below poverty 5.7

In 2020-2024, 4.3 % of households received SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). An estimated 57.9% of households that received SNAP had children under 18, and 39% of households that received SNAP had one or more people 60 years and over. An estimated 30.5% of all households receiving SNAP were families with a female householder and no spouse present.


Among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024, 92.9% had health insurance coverage and 7.1% did not have health insurance coverage. Private coverage was 81.1% and public coverage was 24%, respectively. The percentage of children under the age of 19 with no health insurance coverage was 5%.


In 2020-2024, Fairfax County, Virginia had a total population of 1,147,837 - 574,634 (50.1%) females and 573,203 (49.9%) males. The median age was 39.1 years. An estimated 22.9% of the population was under 18 years, 33.6% was 19 to 44 years, 26.3% was 45 to 64 years, and 15 % was 65 years and older.

Population by Age and Sex for Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

Male Female
Under 5 33991 32338
5 to 9 38326 34803
10 to 14 38050 37306
15 to 19 38984 35932
20 to 24 34149 33388
25 to 29 37535 36138
30 to 34 39033 37435
35 to 39 40822 41024
40 to 44 42869 42604
45 to 49 39179 40033
50 to 54 39309 39474
55 to 59 36618 37775
60 to 64 34857 33930
65 to 69 26893 29092
70 to 74 21419 23463
75 to 79 15703 17528
80 to 84 9017 10982
85 and over 6449 11389

Hispanic Origin and Race

For people reporting one race alone, 49.1% were White; 9.6% were Black or African American; 5% were American Indian and Alaska Native; 19.9% were Asian; 3.3% were Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and 0% were Some Other Race. An estimated 13.4% reported Two or More Races. An estimated 17.6% of the people in Fairfax County, Virginia were Hispanic or Latino. An estimated 46.8% of the people in Fairfax County, Virginia were White alone, non-Hispanic. People of Hispanic origin may be of any race.


Households and Families

In 2020-2024, there were 414,101 households in Fairfax County, Virginia. The average household size was 2.75 people.

Married-couple households made up 57.2% of the households in Fairfax County, Virginia while cohabiting couple households made up 5% of households. Female householders with no spouse or partner present were 22.4% of all households, while 15.5% of households had male householders with no spouse or partner present. Some households had one person, as 10.5% of households were male householders living alone, and 13.7% were female householders living alone, for a total of 24.2% of all households.

In Fairfax County, Virginia, 33.7% of all households had one or more people under the age of 18; 28.5% of all households had one or more people 65 years and over.

Types of Households in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Married-couple households 57.2
Cohabiting Couples 5
Male Householder
No spouse/partner present
15.5
Female Householder
No spouse/partner present
22.4

Marital Status

Among persons 15 and older, 56.8% of males and 53.9% of females were currently married.

Population 15 years and over Percent
Males
Percent
Females
Never married 34.6 29.5
Now married, except separated 56.8 53.9
Separated 1.2 1.4
Widowed 1.5 6.1
Divorced 5.8 9.1

Grandparents and Grandchildren

In Fairfax County, Virginia, 18,554 grandparents lived with their grandchildren under 18 years old. Of those grandparents, 18.6% were responsible for the basic needs of their grandchildren.


Nativity and Foreign-Born

In 2020-2024, an estimated 69.2% of the people living in Fairfax County, Virginia were U.S. natives. 28.9% of the Fairfax County, Virginia population were living in the state where they were born.

Approximately 30.8% of Fairfax County, Virginia residents in 2020-2024 were foreign-born. 62% of foreign-born were naturalized U.S. citizens and an estimated 68.5 % entered the country before the year 2010.

Foreign-born residents of Fairfax County, 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 Fairfax County, Virginia.

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

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Percent
Latin America 28.7
Asia 51.9
Europe 7
Africa 11.4
Northern America 0.7
Oceania 0.2

Language

Among people at least five years old living in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024, 39 % spoke a language other than English at home. Spanish was spoken by 13.6% of people at least five years old; 14% 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 Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Spanish 13.6
Other Indo-European languages 8.8
Asian and Pacific Islander languages 11.7
Other languages 4.9

Geographic Mobility

In 2020-2024, 87 % of the people at least one year old living in Fairfax County, Virginia were living in the same house one year earlier.

Geographic Mobility of Residents of Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Same house 87
Different house, same county 5.6
Different county, same state 2.8
Different state 3.2
Abroad 1.4

Education

In 2020-2024, 93.2 % of people 25 years and over had at least graduated from high school and 65% had a bachelor's degree or higher. An estimated 6.8% did not complete high school.

The total school enrollment in Fairfax County, Virginia was 298,014 in 2020-2024. Nursery school enrollment was 18,135 and kindergarten through 12th grade enrollment was 198,598. College or graduate school enrollment was 81,281.

Educational Attainment of People in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Less than high school diploma 6.8
High school diploma or equivalency 11.9
Some college, no degree 11.1
Associate's degree 5.2
Bachelor's degree 32
Graduate or professional degree 33

Disability

In Fairfax County, Virginia, among the civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2020-2024, 8 % reported a disability. The likelihood of having a disability varied by age - from 3.4% of people under 18 years old, to 5.7% of people 18 to 64 years old, and to 24.5% of those 65 and over.


Employment Status and Type of Employer

In Fairfax County, Virginia, 66.5 % of the population 16 and over were employed; 29.2% were not currently in the labor force.

An estimated 72.8% of the people employed were private wage and salary workers; 21.7% were federal, state, or local government workers; and 5.3 % were self-employed in their own (not incorporated) business.

Class of worker Number Percent
Private wage and salary workers 444,423 72.8
Federal, state, or local government workers 132,371 21.7
Self-employed workers in own not incorporated business 32,325 5.3

Industries

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

Percent by Industry in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining 0.2
Construction 5.1
Manufacturing 3
Wholesale trade 0.8
Retail trade 7.2
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 3.5
Information 2.4
Finance and insurance, and real estate and rental and leasing 7.2
Professional, scientific, and management, and administrative and waste management services 27.2
Educational services, and health care and social assistance 18.1
Arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation, and food services 7.3
Other Services, except public administration 6.1
Public administration 11.9

Occupations

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

Civilian employed population 16 years and over Number Percent
Management, business, sciences, and arts occupations 385,806 63.2
Service occupations 78,781 12.9
Sales and office occupations 86,714 14.2
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 27,187 4.5
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 31,672 5.2

Commuting to Work

An estimated 55.4% of Fairfax County, Virginia workers drove to work alone in 2020-2024, and 7.7% carpooled. Among those who commuted to work, it took them on average 28.9 minutes to get to work.

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

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Percent
Car, truck, van -- drove alone 55.4
Car, truck, van -- carpooled 7.7
Public transportation (excluding taxicab) 4.7
Walked 1.7
Other means 1.8
Worked from home 28.7

In 2020-2024, Fairfax County, Virginia had a total of 430,047 housing units. Of these housing units, 68.2% 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"). 31.1% of the housing units were located in multi-unit structures, or those buildings that contained two or more apartments. 0.5% were mobile homes, while any remaining housing units were classified as "other," which included boats, recreational vehicles, vans, etc.

Types of Housing Units in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Single-family houses 68.2
Apartments in multi-unit structures 31.1
Mobile homes 0.5
Boat, RV, van, etc 0.1

8.5% of the housing inventory was comprised of houses built since 2010, while 1.1% of the houses were first built in 1939 or earlier. The median number of rooms in all housing units in Fairfax County, Virginia was 6.4 rooms, and of these housing units 67.1% had three or more bedrooms.


In 2020-2024, Fairfax County, Virginia had 414,101 housing units that were occupied or had people living in them, while the remaining 15,946 were vacant. Of the occupied housing units, the percentage of these houses occupied by owners (also known as the homeownership rate) was 68.6% while renters occupied 31.4%. The average household size of owner-occupied houses was 2.83 and in renter-occupied houses it was 2.57.

4.9% of householders of these occupied houses had moved into their house since 2021, while 8.7% moved into their house in 1989 or earlier. Households without a vehicle available for personal use comprised 4.8% and another 20.8% had three or more vehicles available for use.

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

House Heating Fuel Used in Fairfax County, Virginia in 2020-2024

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Percent
Gas 55.8
Electricity 42
Fuel oil, kerosene, etc 1.2
All other fuels 0.5
No fuel used 0.5

In 2020-2024, the median property value for owner-occupied houses in Fairfax County, Virginia was $732,800.

Of the owner-occupied households, 71.8 % had a mortgage. 28.2% 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 $3,227 and for owners without a mortgage it was $1,082.

For renter-occupied houses, the median gross rent for Fairfax County, Virginia was $2,276. 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.