State profile
Virginia Cost of Living Comparison
Virginia's 2024 price level is 101.104, 1.1% above the national level, and its six neighbours span almost the whole national range, from the District of Columbia (109.901) to West Virginia (89.497).
Updated
101.104Virginia all-items price level, U.S. = 100 · rank 36 of 51, lowest first
| Measure | Virginia | Arizona | First − second |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-items price level | 101.104 | 100.677 | +0.427 points |
| Rent price level | 106.799 | 106.804 | −0.005 points |
| Home value | $383,700±$1,024 | $394,500±$1,474 | −$10,800 |
| Two-bedroom gross rent | $1,481±$11 | $1,541±$12 | −$60 |
| Household income | $93,170±$458 | $79,964±$407 | +$13,206 |
| Real estate taxes paid | $2,790±$10 | $1,879±$10 | +$911 |
$4,000 of monthly spending in Virginia scales to $3,983 in Arizona at the 2024 all-items price ratio.
BEA 2024 and ACS 2020–2024; ± marks the Census 90% margin. How to read a gap
Virginia: one statewide number, two very different ends
Few states sit between such different neighbours. To the north, the District of Columbia has a rent parity of 154.984 and a two-bedroom gross-rent median of $2,083; Maryland is at 104.959. To the south and west, North Carolina (94.326), Tennessee (91.870), Kentucky (90.159) and West Virginia (89.497) are all cheaper, and West Virginia's two-bedroom median is $896. Virginia's own statewide median of $1,481 blends both worlds, so a household should check the specific county before relying on it.
The statewide categories are close to average. Goods (100.368) and other services (100.233) sit at the national level, rents (106.799) are 6.8% above it and utilities (92.185) 7.81% below.
Incomes are comfortably above average. Virginia keeps most of that edge after the price adjustment, sliding only from 12th to 15th. Renters spend 29.4% of income on gross rent, rank 25.
Ownership is mid-to-high. It ranks 17th for home value and 15th for mortgaged costs, but only 25th for the property-tax bill.
The state government collected $40.26 billion in fiscal 2025, $4,533 per resident (rank 19). Individual income tax supplied 47.3%, general sales 18.8%, other selective sales 13.5% and corporate income tax 11.1%.
Virginia's relative price level has barely moved: 101.003 in 2020, a high of 102.3 in 2021 and 101.104 in 2024. Arizona (100.677) is the nearest price level nationally.
Category price levels in Virginia
| Category | Parity | Rank, low first | vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 101.104 | 36 | 1.10% above |
| Goods | 100.368 | 40 | 0.37% above |
| Housing (rents) | 106.799 | 35 | 6.80% above |
| Utilities | 92.185 | 29 | 7.81% below |
| Other services | 100.233 | 31 | 0.23% above |
| Real income per person, 2017 $ | $61,914 | 15 | U.S. $59,195 |
All items by year: 2020 101.003 · 2021 102.300 · 2022 102.026 · 2023 101.331 · 2024 101.104 (+0.101 since 2020). How to read categories and trends
Monthly housing costs
- Owners with a mortgage
- $2,127±$8 · rank 15, high first
- Owners without a mortgage
- $589±$4 · rank 29
- Renters: gross rent / income
- 29.4%±0.2 · rank 25
Virginia state tax collections, FY2025
$40.26 billion in total, $4,533 per resident. Scope of these figures
| Tax | FY2025 | Share | Per resident |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual income | $19.03 billion | 47.3% | $2,143 |
| General sales | $7.57 billion | 18.8% | $853 |
| Property | $55.7 million | 0.1% | $6 |
| Motor fuel | $1.96 billion | 4.9% | $221 |
| Other selective sales | $5.45 billion | 13.5% | $614 |
| Corporate income | $4.45 billion | 11.1% | $501 |
| Licenses | $1.12 billion | 2.8% | $126 |
| Severance | $4.1 million | 0.0% | $0 |
| Other taxes | $614.0 million | 1.5% | $69 |
Virginia beside its neighbours
| Jurisdiction | All items | Rents | Goods | 2BR rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 101.104 | 106.799 | 100.368 | $1,481 |
| District of Columbia | 109.901 | 154.984 | 106.502 | $2,083 |
| Kentucky | 90.159 | 64.313 | 95.967 | $968 |
| Maryland | 104.959 | 121.079 | 102.524 | $1,740 |
| North Carolina | 94.326 | 81.364 | 96.621 | $1,164 |
| Tennessee | 91.870 | 79.070 | 96.247 | $1,143 |
| West Virginia | 89.497 | 54.241 | 96.539 | $896 |
Before you budget a move
A Virginia comparison should keep the actual employment and home addresses available for tax and travel planning. A Washington-area role and another Virginia destination may require different transit, parking and dwelling inputs. The statewide price index provides a historical screening measure, not an address budget.
For retirement income, age cohorts and approved adjustments belong in a prepared annual liability. The Census median household income does not capture that return calculation. A renter should compare gross-rent definitions with the lease, while a buyer needs financing and actual property-tax inputs beyond statewide owner-value statistics.
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