Before you decide to relocate to Virginia, it’s important to research the exact cost of living around the state. And that’s what we’re going to help you do.
These are the places in Virginia that cost a pretty penny — the most expensive cities in the state.
We used Saturday Night Science to compare the 2020-2024 American Community Survey on cost of living for the 62 places in Virginia with more than 5,000 people.
After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Virginia for 2026.
$143,262 median income · $789,604 median home · #5 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Falls Church city, Virginia
Falls Church is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 12,332. The estimated population in 2015 was 13,892. Falls Church is included in the Washington metropolitan area. Falls Church has the lowest level of poverty of any independent city or county in the United States.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$216,953 median income · $1,179,673 median home · #1 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Fairfax County, Virginia
Vienna is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, it had a population of 15,687. Significantly more people live in ZIP codes with the Vienna postal addresses bordered approximately by Interstate 66 on the south, Interstate 495 on the east, Route 7 to the north, and Hunter Mill road to the west.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$132,348 median income · $792,535 median home · #4 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Fairfax city, Virginia
Fairfax, colloquially Central Fairfax, Downtown Fairfax, Fairfax City, or the City of Fairfax, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2010 census the population was 22,565, which had risen to an estimated 24,013 as of 2015.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$119,681 median income · $676,205 median home · #8 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Alexandria city, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 139,966, and in 2016, the population was estimated to be 155,810. Located along the western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately 7 miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$148,000 median income · $740,680 median home · #6 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Fairfax County, Virginia
Herndon is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area of the United States. The population was 23,292 at the 2010 census, which makes it the largest of three incorporated towns in the county.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$165,121 median income · $909,565 median home · #2 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Loudoun County, Virginia
Purcellville is a town in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. The population was 9,232 according to the United States Census 2015 Population Estimate. Purcellville is the major population center for western Loudoun and the Loudoun Valley. Today, many of the older structures remaining in Purcellville reflect the Victorian architecture popular during the early 20th century. Patrick Henry College is located in the town.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$145,205 median income · $865,517 median home · #3 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Loudoun County, Virginia
Leesburg is a historic town within and the county seat of Loudoun County, Virginia. Leesburg is 33 miles west-northwest of Washington, D.C. along the base of Catoctin Mountain and adjacent to the Potomac River. Its population according to the 2010 Census is 42,616. The town is also the northwestern terminus of the Dulles Greenway, a private toll road that connects to the Dulles Toll Road at Washington Dulles International Airport.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$83,331 median income · $681,948 median home · #7 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Fauquier County, Virginia
Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, United States. The population was 9,611 at the 2010 census, up from 6,670 at the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2015 was 9,897. Warrenton is the county seat of Fauquier County. It is at the junction of U.S. Route 15, U.S. Route 17, U.S. Route 29, and U.S. Route 211. The town is in the Piedmont region of Virginia, east of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The well-known Airlie Conference Center is 3 miles north of Warrenton, and the historic Vint Hill Farms military facility is 9 miles east. Fauquier Hospital is located in the town. Surrounded by Virginia wine and horse country, Warrenton is a popular destination outside Washington, D.C.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$86,071 median income · $480,265 median home · #12 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Fredericksburg city, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city located in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the Eastern United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 24,286, up from 19,279 at the 2000 census. The city population was estimated at 28,118 in 2015. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of Commerce combines the city of Fredericksburg with neighboring Spotsylvania County for statistical purposes.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$113,590 median income · $557,119 median home · #10 home prices in Virginia
Located in
Manassas city, Virginia
Manassas is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 37,821. The city borders Prince William County, the independent city of Manassas Park, and Fairfax County. The Bureau of Economic Analysis includes both Manassas and Manassas Park with Prince William County for statistical purposes.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Virginia’s statewide median.
Virginia statewide median: $412,467
Virginia statewide median: $93,170
On the map
Mapping the most expensive places in Virginia
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Old Dominion For 2026
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford a city in Virginia are how much money you make and how much you have to spend to live there.
You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.
For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing, it’s actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.
With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2020-2024 around incomes and costs. They are:
- Overall Cost Of Living Index
- Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
- Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
- Median Home Price
You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Virginia to figure out which is the most expensive.
You are left with a “Cost of Living Index” by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.
So we used that cost of living index to rank all of the 62 places in Virginia that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in Virginia according to the data is Falls Church. We updated this article for 2026. This article is our eleventh time ranking the most expensive places to live in Virginia.
The full plate
Most Expensive Cities In Virginia
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Cost Of Living | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price | Home/Income Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Falls Church | 184 | 14,710 | $143,262 | $789,604 | 5.5x |
| 2 | Vienna | 183 | 16,412 | $216,953 | $1,179,673 | 5.4x |
| 3 | Fairfax | 158 | 25,026 | $132,348 | $792,535 | 6.0x |
| 4 | Alexandria | 153 | 156,976 | $119,681 | $676,205 | 5.7x |
| 5 | Herndon | 147 | 24,672 | $148,000 | $740,680 | 5.0x |
| 6 | Purcellville | 143 | 8,973 | $165,121 | $909,565 | 5.5x |
| 7 | Leesburg | 142 | 49,171 | $145,205 | $865,517 | 6.0x |
| 8 | Warrenton | 128 | 10,176 | $83,331 | $681,948 | 8.2x |
| 9 | Fredericksburg | 127 | 28,873 | $86,071 | $480,265 | 5.6x |
| 10 | Manassas | 126 | 42,976 | $113,590 | $557,119 | 4.9x |
| 11 | Manassas Park | 125 | 16,798 | $103,250 | $462,197 | 4.5x |
| 12 | Williamsburg | 125 | 15,798 | $75,604 | $464,104 | 6.1x |
| 13 | Poquoson | 125 | 12,639 | $120,972 | $462,480 | 3.8x |
| 14 | Charlottesville | 124 | 45,437 | $74,824 | $515,217 | 6.9x |
| 15 | Blacksburg | 120 | 45,446 | $50,182 | $420,779 | 8.4x |
| 16 | Culpeper | 119 | 20,794 | $94,721 | $451,495 | 4.8x |
| 17 | Virginia Beach | 118 | 456,349 | $92,968 | $427,032 | 4.6x |
| 18 | Chesapeake | 117 | 252,583 | $95,373 | $420,756 | 4.4x |
| 19 | Suffolk | 116 | 98,796 | $92,666 | $384,301 | 4.1x |
| 20 | Smithfield | 116 | 8,834 | $113,158 | $393,349 | 3.5x |
| 21 | Dumfries | 114 | 5,816 | $82,355 | $596,416 | 7.2x |
| 22 | Richmond | 112 | 229,359 | $64,587 | $369,646 | 5.7x |
| 23 | Winchester | 112 | 27,913 | $63,974 | $399,457 | 6.2x |
| 24 | Bridgewater | 111 | 6,708 | $75,280 | $375,081 | 5.0x |
| 25 | Front Royal | 110 | 15,296 | $64,838 | $383,200 | 5.9x |
| 26 | Lexington | 110 | 7,525 | $84,517 | $358,989 | 4.2x |
| 27 | Norfolk | 109 | 233,596 | $66,109 | $306,227 | 4.6x |
| 28 | Harrisonburg | 109 | 51,392 | $62,254 | $348,178 | 5.6x |
| 29 | Woodstock | 108 | 5,871 | $76,100 | $337,785 | 4.4x |
| 30 | Hampton | 107 | 137,557 | $69,621 | $275,341 | 4.0x |
| 31 | Orange | 107 | 5,066 | $76,370 | $336,894 | 4.4x |
| 32 | Salem | 106 | 25,618 | $66,725 | $305,426 | 4.6x |
| 33 | Ashland | 106 | 7,772 | $61,164 | $463,340 | 7.6x |
| 34 | Portsmouth | 104 | 97,190 | $60,491 | $260,462 | 4.3x |
| 35 | Colonial Heights | 104 | 18,352 | $76,505 | $294,925 | 3.9x |
| 36 | Strasburg | 104 | 7,214 | $62,464 | $346,089 | 5.5x |
| 37 | Newport News | 103 | 184,216 | $69,634 | $290,660 | 4.2x |
| 38 | Christiansburg | 103 | 22,720 | $77,147 | $304,607 | 3.9x |
| 39 | Farmville | 103 | 7,774 | $40,966 | $261,292 | 6.4x |
| 40 | Lynchburg | 102 | 79,497 | $57,947 | $262,101 | 4.5x |
| 41 | Staunton | 102 | 25,948 | $65,581 | $308,028 | 4.7x |
| 42 | Franklin | 101 | 8,250 | $63,245 | $242,884 | 3.8x |
| 43 | Radford | 100 | 16,726 | $57,348 | $261,601 | 4.6x |
| 44 | Waynesboro | 99 | 22,841 | $59,994 | $312,910 | 5.2x |
| 45 | Petersburg | 96 | 33,537 | $50,698 | $245,998 | 4.9x |
| 46 | Hopewell | 96 | 22,959 | $54,729 | $232,749 | 4.3x |
| 47 | Wytheville | 96 | 8,202 | $47,270 | $223,768 | 4.7x |
| 48 | Vinton | 96 | 8,056 | $65,445 | $283,675 | 4.3x |
| 49 | Abingdon | 95 | 8,330 | $54,544 | $281,619 | 5.2x |
| 50 | South Boston | 95 | 7,853 | $44,052 | $149,172 | 3.4x |
| 51 | Roanoke | 94 | 98,355 | $55,378 | $277,113 | 5.0x |
| 52 | Buena Vista | 93 | 6,593 | $57,833 | $196,020 | 3.4x |
| 53 | Emporia | 91 | 5,547 | $51,899 | $159,794 | 3.1x |
| 54 | Pulaski | 90 | 8,893 | $49,491 | $168,552 | 3.4x |
| 55 | Big Stone Gap | 90 | 5,162 | $54,581 | $140,137 | 2.6x |
| 56 | Martinsville | 89 | 13,658 | $46,727 | $133,032 | 2.8x |
| 57 | Danville | 88 | 42,214 | $44,423 | $156,399 | 3.5x |
| 58 | Bristol | 88 | 16,849 | $50,404 | $201,474 | 4.0x |
| 59 | Galax | 88 | 6,726 | $38,675 | $182,063 | 4.7x |
| 60 | Covington | 87 | 5,680 | $41,944 | $158,023 | 3.8x |
| 61 | Marion | 87 | 5,670 | $40,896 | $157,966 | 3.9x |
| 62 | Richlands | 86 | 5,171 | $37,154 | $106,217 | 2.9x |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, Zillow research. 62 places with more than 5,000 residents.
Summary
Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Virginia For 2026
Well, there you have it, the places in Virginia that have the highest cost of living, with Falls Church ranking as the most expensive city in the Old Dominion.
The most expensive cities in Virginia are Falls Church, Vienna, Fairfax, Alexandria, Herndon, Purcellville, Leesburg, Warrenton, Fredericksburg, and Manassas.
