Official Federal Data
Virginia Beach city, Virginia
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC · Population 456,349
10 Sources
Updated August 12, 2026
$92,968 up from the baseline named below
Median Income (nominal) vs 2019
$80,734 national
3.2% up from the baseline named below
Unemployment vs 2024
4.3% national
$32.9B up from the baseline named below
GDP (nominal) real change vs 2023
40.9% up from the baseline named below
Bachelor's+ vs 2019
35.7% national
Demographics & Population
Census Bureau American Community Survey 2020-2024 · 5-Year Estimates
Household Income
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
Median Household (nominal)
$92,968 up from 2019 vs 2019
Per Capita
$48,736 up from 2019 vs 2019
Mean Household
$120,766 up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Household (cost-of-living adjusted)
$94,962 metro RPP 97.9
Poverty Rate
8.6% up from 2019 vs 2019
Median Income Comparison
Virginia Beach city$92,968
Virginia$93,170
National$80,734
Virginia Beach city is $202 (0.2%) below the Virginia median, despite sitting above the national median.
Cost-of-living adjustment uses the BEA all-items regional price parity for Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, 97.9 against a national average of 100 (2024). BEA publishes regional price parity at state and metropolitan level only; there is no county figure, so the metro index stands in for Virginia Beach city and the adjusted median is an approximation. Per capita and mean household income above are nominal and carry no adjustment.
Population Profile
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B01001, B02001, B03003
CohortsShare of total population
Under 18 · 21.9%
18-34 · 23.8%
35-54 · 25.9%
55-64 · 12.5%
65+ · 15.9%
Race & Ethnicity
Hispanic or Latino is an ethnic category and overlaps with the race categories above.
Educational Attainment
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · Population 25+
94.7%
High School+
National: 89.6%
up from national +5.1 pts vs national
40.9%
Bachelor's+
National: 35.7%
up from national +5.2 pts vs national
15.5%
Graduate+
National: 14.1%
up from national +1.4 pts vs national
Employment Overview
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates
456,349
Population
251,794
Labor Force
Employed
220,728
Unemployment Rate BLS LAUS 2025 annual
3.2% up from 2024 +0.4 pts vs 2024
Mean Commute 3 min below national avg
23.4 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.3%
Labor Force and Employed are ACS 5-Year survey estimates; the Unemployment Rate above comes from BLS LAUS, a separate monthly survey with its own methodology. The two won't reconcile by subtracting one from the other.
Key Takeaways
- Income premium: Households earn well above the national median, supporting strong retail and housing markets.
- Below the state median: Median household income runs $202 (0.2%) under the Virginia median, so statewide income averages overstate local household buying power.
- Talent advantage: Bachelor's-or-higher attainment exceeds the national average by 5.2 pts, supports knowledge-economy and tech attraction.
Economy & Industry
Bureau of Labor Statistics QCEW · Bureau of Economic Analysis
$32.9B up from 2023 +6.6% vs 2023
Gross Domestic Product · 2024
+6.6% real (inflation-adjusted)
·
+10.2% nominal
· 2023 to 2024
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis · level and nominal change from CAGDP2 (current dollars); real change from CAGDP9 (chained 2017 dollars), both all-industry total. The two series agree in 2017, the chain reference year, and diverge by the amount of price change since.
97.9
Cost of Living · metro · Below Avg
Key Takeaways
- Largest private-sector industry: Health Care and Social Assistance employs 24,862 workers (19.1% of tracked sectors), at an average wage of $64,071. Every industry figure on this page is private sector; government employs a further 28,846 and is counted separately.
- Economic scale: Regional GDP of $32.9B (2024).
- Wage stratification: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services averages $97,601 while Accommodation and Food Services averages $26,769, a 3.6x spread in the same local economy, with implications for workforce development and talent strategy.
Source: BLS QCEW + BEA Regional GDP.
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Industry Concentration
Location Quotient measures regional specialization vs. national average. LQ > 1.0 = concentrated.
Cluster Depth
Source: BLS QCEW · Sub-sectors with LQ ≥ 1.5 indicate genuine cluster concentration
Concentrated Sub-Sectors
6 sub-sectors at LQ ≥ 1.5
Largest grouping among them is Accommodation & Food Services Cluster at 60.4% of the employment across all of them, which signals supply-chain fit for site selectors
34,632
Employment in the sub-sectors listed
2.24x
Peak sub-sector LQ
Sub-Sector Detail
Internet Publishing and Broadcasting
2.24x 872
Real Estate
1.88x 3,850
Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries
1.70x 3,576
Personal and Laundry Services
1.60x 2,829
Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Misc. Retailers
1.53x 2,600
Food Services and Drinking Places
1.52x 20,905
Attraction Opportunities
LQ < 0.5 with ≥ 50 employed, screened against local siting constraints. Source: BLS QCEW
0.05x
Warehousing and Storage
109 employed
0.08x
Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing
92 employed
0.12x
Wood Product Manufacturing
55 employed
0.14x
Food Manufacturing
286 employed
Screened on industrial power cost, rail-truck intermodal access, land base; 3 further sub-sectors met the LQ test but conflict with a measured local constraint and are not listed.
Industrial electricity in Virginia costs 9.45¢/kWh against 8.62¢/kWh nationally (2025).
Virginia has 7 rail-truck intermodal terminals, the nearest 13 miles from the city.
Land area 245 sq mi, larger than 9% of US counties.
Sources: EIA, BTS NTAD, Census Gazetteer.
Key Takeaways
- Top specialization: Internet Publishing and Broadcasting concentrates at 2.24x the national norm.
- Cluster depth: 6 sub-sectors register LQ ≥ 1.5, but 70.7% of the employment across them depends on one source of demand: visitor economy. Read the count as depth within that single demand base rather than as spread across separate ones.
- Attraction whitespace: 4 sub-sectors register LQ < 0.5 with at least 50 employed and clear the local siting screen on energy cost, freight access and land base, candidates for diversification or recruitment depending on labor-market fit.
Source: BLS QCEW sub-sector Location Quotients.
Housing & Affordability
Census ACS · HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026
Housing Overview
Source: Census Bureau ACS 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates · Tables B25001, B25077, B25064, B25004
$382,500 up from the baseline named below
Median Home Value vs 2019
$1,714 up from the baseline named below
Rent/Mo vs 2019
65.1% up from the baseline named below
Owner-Occ vs 2019
6% down from the baseline named below
Vacancy vs 2019
2.2% available
for rent or sale
for rent or sale
4.1x
Home Value to Income Ratio
vs. ~4.1x national average
HUD Fair Market Rents
HUD publishes these by FMR area, which may cover more than one county · Source: HUD · Fair Market Rents FY2026 · Affordability threshold and renter cost burden from Census ACS B25119, B25070
Studio
$1,492/mo
1 Bedroom
$1,512/mo
2 Bedroom
$1,713/mo
3 Bedroom
$2,376/mo
4 Bedroom
$2,797/mo
30% of monthly median renter household income (~$1,572/mo, from a renter median of $62,879) · rents above this line are typically considered cost-burdened.
Measured: 51.4% of renter households already pay 30% or more of income on rent, and 24.6% pay 50% or more.
Key Takeaways
- In line with national: Home value to income ratio of 4.1x sits near the ~4.1x national average; affordability is neither a clear advantage nor a recruitment friction.
- Affordable rent tiers: 2 of 5 HUD Fair Market Rent bedroom sizes sit below what a household on the median renter income of $62,879 can pay without cost burden (~$1,572/mo), and 51.4% of renter households are measured as cost-burdened.
Source: Census ACS housing tables + HUD Fair Market Rents.
Workforce Pipeline
Labor force readiness, commuting, and workforce composition
Labor Market Overview
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Tables B01001, B23001, B23025, B08303, B08301
283,975 down from the baseline named below
Working Age (18-64) vs 2019
Mean Commute 3 min below national avg
23.4 min
Work From Home vs 15.1% national
14.3%
Prime-Age Employed (25-54)
75.5%
of prime-age population
Prime-age rate numerator is civilian employed (B23001); the denominator is total population aged 25-54 (B01001), which also includes armed forces.
of population age 16 and over (367,836)
down from 2019 vs 2019
Education & Talent Pipeline
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table B15003 · College Scorecard
Bachelor's+
40.9% up from 2019 vs 2019
HS Diploma+
94.7% up from 2019 vs 2019
Institutions in Virginia Beach city
Largest 6 of 12 by credentials awarded, in Virginia Beach city
Credentials awarded in Virginia Beach city
7,680/yr
4,022/yr
2,445/yr
393/yr
369/yr
294/yr
157/yr
Aging Workforce
Source: Census Bureau ACS · Derived from age & employment tables
20.1%
55-64 of working-age population (18-64)
Same cohort is 12.5% of total population, the basis used in the Demographics cohort chart.
Elevated retirement risk, above the 20% threshold. Succession planning recommended.
Workforce by Occupation
Source: Census ACS 2020-2024 · Table C24010 · Civilian employed population 16+
Management / Professional
47.5%
Service
16.3%
Sales & Office
20.1%
Construction / Maint.
6.7%
Production / Transport
9.5%
Bars are drawn on a 0% to 60% axis, so bar length is proportional to actual share. Labels give each group's share of 220,728 employed workers.
Key Takeaways
- Healthy participation: 68.5% labor force participation reflects a steady, available local workforce.
- Talent pipeline: the 6 largest of 12 institutions in Virginia Beach city award 7,680 credentials a year. Employers drawing from a wider labor shed should read this alongside institutions outside the county, which this page does not aggregate.
Source: ACS workforce data and College Scorecard.
AI Insights
Sample output. Pulse AI analysis draws on 10 federal data sources.
Sample AI Insight
Virginia Beach city shows emerging potential for internet publishing and broadcasting attraction, with a 2.24x concentration and 872 jobs in this sub-sector.
Most of the employment across the concentrated sub-sectors traces back to a single source of demand. Visitor economy accounts for 70.7% of it, with food services and drinking places the largest single sub-sector at 60.4%. Recruitment that widens the demand base changes that exposure; recruitment inside the same base deepens it.
Industry Shift Analysis
Manufacturing Automation Risk
High
Healthcare Growth Forecast
+4.2% CAGR
Remote Work Migration
67/100
Prospect Match Scores
Advanced Manufacturing
92/100
Life Sciences
84/100
Data Centers
71/100
Illustrative example
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Data Sources
Updated from official federal government data.
Census ACS 5-Year2024
BLS QCEW2024 annual
BLS LAUS2025 annual
BEA Regional GDP2024
BEA Regional Price Parity2024
Census CBP2023
HUD Fair Market RentsFY2026
FCC Broadband Map2024
USAspending.govFY2026
College ScorecardAY 2022-23
American Community Survey figures on this page are 2020-2024 five-year averages rather than single-year counts. A five-year estimate pools 60 months of survey responses, so each value describes the period as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Key economic and demographic figures for Virginia Beach city, Virginia, from federal data sources.
What is the population of Virginia Beach city, Virginia?
456,349 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates).
What is the median household income in Virginia Beach city, Virginia?
$92,968 in nominal dollars (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates). Adjusted for local prices using the BEA all-items regional price parity for Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC (97.9 against a national average of 100), that is $94,962 at national average prices. BEA publishes regional price parity at metro level; there is no county-level figure.
What is the unemployment rate in Virginia Beach city, Virginia?
3.2% (2025 annual average, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS).
What is the GDP of Virginia Beach city, Virginia?
$32.9B (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, CAGDP2).
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