You’re probably never going to make enough money to live in the richest counties in Virginia.
The median household income in Falls Church city, the richest county in Virginia is $143,262, significantly higher than the US median of $74,580, which means based purely on math most people never make enough to live there.
And that’s okay because it’s still fun to look at the people living in the lap of luxury.
So we used Saturday Night Science and the most recent Census to rank home prices and incomes for all 132 counties in the Old Dominion. Let’s star gaze together.
What is the richest county in Virginia? The richest county in Virginia is Falls Church city. In contrast, the poorest county in the state is Buchanan County, according to the Census data.
$143,262 median income · $1,134,741 median home price
$181,765 median income · $805,711 median home price
$142,114 median income · $824,388 median home price
$153,637 median income · $774,448 median home price
$132,348 median income · $776,775 median home price
$130,189 median income · $647,006 median home price
$131,402 median income · $587,492 median home price
$119,681 median income · $790,213 median home price
$137,807 median income · $540,304 median home price
$118,931 median income · $581,702 median home price
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Virginia’s statewide median.
Virginia statewide median: $93,170
Virginia statewide median: $412,467
On the map
Where Virginia’s richest counties are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which Virginia county is the richest?
To determine the richest county in Virginia, we have to look at a handful of metrics that correlate with how rich people are. To do that, we made assumptions about what makes a county rich. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.
With that in mind, we went to the American Community Survey data and Zillow for the most recent reporting period for data on the following:
- Average Home Price
- Median Income
We then ranked each county in Virginia for each of the criteria from one to 132, with one being the richest.
Taking the average rank across the two criteria, we created a Rich Score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Richest County In Virginia.”
The result is some of the places with the most expensive real estate and highest earners in the Old Dominion.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our first time ranking the richest counties to live in Virginia. The median Virginia home is 41 years old — old enough that it pays to compare home warranty plans before something expensive breaks.
The full plate
Detailed List Of The Richest Counties In Virginia
Click any column to sort. Search by county name.
| Rank | County | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Falls Church city | 14,710 | $143,262 | $1,134,741 |
| 1 | Loudoun County | 432,998 | $181,765 | $805,711 |
| 3 | Arlington County | 236,254 | $142,114 | $824,388 |
| 4 | Fairfax County | 1,147,837 | $153,637 | $774,448 |
| 5 | Fairfax city | 25,026 | $132,348 | $776,775 |
| 7 | Fauquier County | 74,577 | $130,189 | $647,006 |
| 7 | Prince William County | 488,880 | $131,402 | $587,492 |
| 7 | Alexandria city | 156,976 | $119,681 | $790,213 |
| 9 | Stafford County | 163,466 | $137,807 | $540,304 |
| 10 | Goochland County | 26,410 | $118,931 | $581,702 |
| 11 | Clarke County | 15,216 | $117,111 | $568,753 |
| 12 | Albemarle County | 114,919 | $104,392 | $553,894 |
| 14 | Manassas city | 42,976 | $113,590 | $483,630 |
| 14 | New Kent County | 25,105 | $123,314 | $439,187 |
| 14 | King George County | 27,896 | $116,884 | $470,062 |
| 16 | Powhatan County | 31,555 | $110,537 | $493,803 |
| 17 | Poquoson city | 12,639 | $120,972 | $430,312 |
| 19 | York County | 71,005 | $109,956 | $461,496 |
| 19 | Hanover County | 112,879 | $112,805 | $454,934 |
| 19 | Spotsylvania County | 146,603 | $112,738 | $456,350 |
| 21 | Culpeper County | 54,397 | $100,049 | $485,035 |
| 22 | Manassas Park city | 16,798 | $103,250 | $425,582 |
| 23 | Frederick County | 95,008 | $97,606 | $427,505 |
| 23 | Fredericksburg city | 28,873 | $86,071 | $519,964 |
| 25 | Chesterfield County | 377,869 | $101,931 | $409,268 |
| 26 | Rappahannock County | 7,427 | $83,380 | $562,641 |
| 27 | Chesapeake city | 252,583 | $95,373 | $406,770 |
| 28 | Virginia Beach city | 456,349 | $92,968 | $411,177 |
| 29 | Louisa County | 39,980 | $86,689 | $415,533 |
| 30 | Orange County | 37,822 | $94,008 | $380,212 |
| 30 | Henrico County | 335,744 | $88,783 | $397,234 |
| 32 | Fluvanna County | 28,092 | $96,768 | $374,395 |
| 33 | Isle of Wight County | 39,974 | $95,241 | $376,397 |
| 34 | Madison County | 14,044 | $84,323 | $414,199 |
| 35 | Charlottesville city | 45,437 | $74,824 | $523,189 |
| 35 | Greene County | 21,155 | $89,808 | $378,637 |
| 37 | Warren County | 41,531 | $84,682 | $393,261 |
| 37 | Suffolk city | 98,796 | $92,666 | $373,446 |
| 39 | Williamsburg city | 15,798 | $75,604 | $460,196 |
| 40 | Caroline County | 32,098 | $87,407 | $352,917 |
| 40 | Gloucester County | 39,526 | $84,306 | $371,033 |
| 42 | Prince George County | 43,146 | $84,897 | $353,626 |
| 43 | King William County | 18,593 | $86,056 | $349,721 |
| 44 | Middlesex County | 10,847 | $75,060 | $383,930 |
| 45 | Augusta County | 78,033 | $82,049 | $359,440 |
| 46 | Rockingham County | 85,600 | $80,693 | $358,955 |
| 47 | Lancaster County | 10,936 | $69,713 | $389,603 |
| 48 | Roanoke County | 97,023 | $83,709 | $334,262 |
| 49 | Bedford County | 80,894 | $78,937 | $347,761 |
| 50 | Nelson County | 14,732 | $72,589 | $361,835 |
| 51 | Lexington city | 7,525 | $84,517 | $295,833 |
| 52 | Mathews County | 8,540 | $75,880 | $342,415 |
| 53 | Botetourt County | 34,004 | $81,213 | $310,578 |
| 54 | Amelia County | 13,462 | $76,717 | $326,735 |
| 55 | Montgomery County | 99,101 | $72,715 | $342,441 |
| 56 | Dinwiddie County | 28,191 | $83,704 | $295,196 |
| 57 | Northumberland County | 12,188 | $66,480 | $362,087 |
| 57 | Franklin County | 55,130 | $68,849 | $355,876 |
| 59 | Richmond city | 229,359 | $64,587 | $379,465 |
| 60 | Shenandoah County | 44,925 | $67,191 | $341,883 |
| 60 | Winchester city | 27,913 | $63,974 | $368,716 |
| 62 | Surry County | 6,549 | $78,041 | $278,689 |
| 63 | Charles City County | 6,627 | $75,417 | $281,917 |
| 64 | King and Queen County | 6,695 | $70,469 | $300,988 |
| 65 | Norfolk city | 233,596 | $66,109 | $311,635 |
| 66 | Colonial Heights city | 18,352 | $76,505 | $265,088 |
| 66 | Rockbridge County | 22,531 | $65,469 | $329,288 |
| 68 | Newport News city | 184,216 | $69,634 | $280,138 |
| 69 | Southampton County | 17,964 | $70,795 | $268,328 |
| 70 | Westmoreland County | 18,826 | $63,398 | $306,854 |
| 71 | Salem city | 25,618 | $66,725 | $277,988 |
| 71 | Harrisonburg city | 51,392 | $62,254 | $321,524 |
| 73 | Highland County | 2,296 | $65,625 | $281,504 |
| 74 | Hampton city | 137,557 | $69,621 | $264,121 |
| 75 | Staunton city | 25,948 | $65,581 | $278,633 |
| 75 | Campbell County | 55,312 | $66,165 | $270,596 |
| 77 | Northampton County | 12,059 | $61,632 | $305,552 |
| 77 | Amherst County | 31,485 | $68,724 | $257,885 |
| 79 | Appomattox County | 16,610 | $62,853 | $290,320 |
| 80 | Craig County | 4,856 | $69,057 | $227,156 |
| 81 | Richmond County | 9,095 | $66,304 | $244,336 |
| 82 | Franklin city | 8,250 | $63,245 | $275,838 |
| 84 | Washington County | 53,926 | $64,552 | $255,766 |
| 84 | Page County | 23,727 | $57,037 | $301,313 |
| 84 | Floyd County | 15,593 | $62,191 | $275,212 |
| 86 | Essex County | 10,623 | $56,520 | $295,722 |
| 87 | Portsmouth city | 97,190 | $60,491 | $265,411 |
| 88 | Giles County | 16,557 | $65,691 | $199,651 |
| 89 | Waynesboro city | 22,841 | $59,994 | $263,906 |
| 90 | Buckingham County | 16,976 | $60,828 | $249,895 |
| 91 | Cumberland County | 9,818 | $55,325 | $280,107 |
| 92 | Pulaski County | 33,687 | $62,028 | $215,729 |
| 93 | Accomack County | 33,335 | $58,993 | $243,435 |
| 93 | Lynchburg city | 79,497 | $57,947 | $247,029 |
| 95 | Nottoway County | 15,597 | $63,261 | $194,743 |
| 96 | Sussex County | 10,765 | $63,530 | $185,630 |
| 97 | Radford city | 16,726 | $57,348 | $237,247 |
| 98 | Prince Edward County | 21,996 | $56,315 | $239,656 |
| 98 | Wythe County | 28,188 | $57,745 | $214,803 |
| 100 | Mecklenburg County | 30,516 | $57,045 | $206,873 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS + Zillow via Saturday Night Science. All 132 Virginia counties.
Summary
Summary: The Richest Counties In Virginia For 2026
Living in Virginia can vary from one part of the state to the next, with pretty extreme variance in home prices and incomes across counties.
The richest counties in Virginia are Falls Church city, Loudoun County, Arlington County, Fairfax County, Fairfax city, Fauquier County, Prince William County, Alexandria city, Stafford County, and Goochland County.
Now you know the parts of the state where Goodwill will have the best goodies, and that’s what you came here to learn at the end of the day.
You are welcome. Not sold on Virginia? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
