Town · Caroline County, Virginia

Bowling Green, Virginia

Bowling Green is a town in Caroline County, Virginia. It has 1,561 residents. Bowling Green, Virginia has a quality-of-life score of 39 out of 100 (low), ranking #9,622 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Virginia it ranks #306 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on job growth (high), food environment index (high) and child care cost burden (low). It ranks worst on primary care physicians (low), preventable hospital stays (high) and restaurants and bars (low).

39Low

Quality-of-life score: #9,622 of 15,651 cities and towns
Virginia: #306 of 375 in VA
Population: 1,561 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 973.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 5108888

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 73 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety50#7,818/15,637
Economy47#8,222/15,631
Housing53#7,000/14,977
Health31#10,780/15,609
Healthcare12#13,755/15,650
Environment81#2,899/15,453
Education68#4,995/15,649
Infrastructure24#11,919/15,650
Community58#6,640/15,651
Leisure & amenities3#15,240/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Bowling Green, Virginia ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Caroline County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Job growth · high2.6%
92/100Virginia -0.2%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataCaroline County value
Food environment index · high9.1
89/100Virginia 8.9United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Child care cost burden · low22.5%
87/100Virginia 24.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Median Air Quality Index · low35
86/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCaroline County value
Days with unhealthy air · low0.0%
84/1002025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyCaroline County value
Dental care shortage · low0.0
84/100Virginia 6.1United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationCaroline County value

Weaknesses

Primary care physicians · low9 /100k
1/100Virginia 76 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Preventable hospital stays · high5,295 /100k
1/100Virginia 2,649 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Restaurants and bars · low2.9 /10k
2/100Virginia 8.4 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsCaroline County value
Dentists · low21 /100k
5/100Virginia 76 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Mental health providers · low60 /100k
7/100Virginia 284 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low46.7%
9/100Virginia 83.8%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteCaroline County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
1,249 (2015-2019) → 1,561 (2020-2024)
+25%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
62.1% (2015-2019) → 87.9% (2020-2024)
+26 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
33.1% (2015-2019) → 49.0% (2020-2024)
+16 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
15.9% (2015-2019) → 3.2% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Child poverty rateWorsening
4.6% (2015-2019) → 15.2% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
High school diploma or higherImproving
83.3% (2015-2019) → 93.5% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Bowling Green, Virginia improved on 2 of 12 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 10 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Broadband+26 points62.1% → 87.9%
Household income+44%$57,250 → $82,500

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 12 measures

Change of every measure of Bowling Green, Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	34.7 min2015-2019	31.0 min2020-2024	−3.7 min	Within the margin of error	84%
Bachelor's degree or higher	17.8%2015-2019	24.0%2020-2024	+6.2 points	Within the margin of error	75%
Broadband subscriptions	62.1%2015-2019	87.9%2020-2024	+26 points	Improved	96%
Effective property tax rate	0.67%2015-2019	0.66%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	18%
High school diploma or higher	83.3%2015-2019	93.5%2020-2024	+10 points	Within the margin of error	96%
Home price to income ratio	4.1×2015-2019	4.1×2020-2024	−0.0×	Within the margin of error	81%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4242015-2019	0.4312020-2024	+0.008	Within the margin of error	44%
Median household income	$57,2502015-2019	$82,5002020-2024	+44%	Improved	79%
Poverty rate	9.5%2015-2019	14.6%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	24.8%2015-2019	29.8%2020-2024	+5 points	Within the margin of error	22%
Rent-burdened households	33.1%2015-2019	49.0%2020-2024	+16 points	Within the margin of error	13%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Bowling Green, Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Bowling Green, Virginia in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Bowling Green, Virginia itself moved +2.4 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,561 residents (±439)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

586 households (±146)

Bowling Green, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $25k24%†141
$25k–50k15%†87
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

586 households (±146)

Bowling Green, Virginia
Virginia share

Own64%377
Rent36%†209

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

561 workers (±199)

Bowling Green, Virginia
Virginia share

Drive alone88%†493
Carpool4.1%†23
Public transit

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Caroline County, the county holding most of Bowling Green's residents.

Caroline County has 424 employer establishments, 129 for every 10,000 residents (0.52× the US rate of 248; 0.54× Virginia's), with 4,315 paid employees at an average annual pay of $45,251. The Census Bureau also counts 2,433 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 424; 2,433 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 129; US 248 · Virginia 241
Paid employees: 4,315
Average annual pay: $45,251; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Caroline County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	34	10.4	0.67×Fewer than typical	191	$63,723	182
Religious organizations	30	9.2	1.65×More than typical	115	$14,287	—
Restaurants and other eating places	29	8.9	0.48×Fewer than typical	484	$22,729	10
Gasoline stations	26	7.9	2.45×More than typical	373	$34,314	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	23	7	1.04×About typical	98	$39,490	206
Truck transportation	22	6.7	1.33×More than typical	246	$41,585	87
Ambulatory health care services	18	5.5	0.26×Fewer than typical	121	$56,587	85
Building equipment contractors	17	5.2	0.86×About typical	114	$68,614	29
Construction of buildings	16	4.9	0.65×Fewer than typical	102	$48,559	86
Lessors of real estate	16	4.9	0.40×Fewer than typical	37	$59,865	197
Full-service restaurants	14	4.3	0.56×Fewer than typical	186	$23,629	—
Limited-service restaurants	14	4.3	0.53×Fewer than typical	254	$20,319	5

Rank places for an industry Open Caroline County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 32,745 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $154.1K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Bowling Green, Virginia: $98.71 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $154.1K; −50% vs FY2025
Per resident: $98.71; US $1,994
Sole-source: 45%; US 30%
Single offer: 1.2%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Army$71.6K46%
Defense Logistics Agency$63.5K41%
U.S. Customs and Border Protection$20.5K13%
Federal Acquisition Service$3030.2%

Top recipients

AMERICAN WATER OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE, LLC$51.6K34%
CONSTELLATION ENERGY SOLUTIONS, LLC$17K11%
TECHNAUTIX, CORP.$16.1K10%
RAPPAHANNOCK ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE$11.8K7.6%
KAUKAHI LLC$11K7.1%

Spending by fiscal year

583.3KFY2017
395.9KFY2018
321.1KFY2019
314.6KFY2020
320KFY2021
350.6KFY2022
432.7KFY2023
469.8K

Top industries (NAICS)

Water, sewage and other systems · 2213$51.6K34%
Facilities support services · 5612$27.5K18%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$23.9K16%
Electric power generation, transmission and distribution · 2211$11.8K7.6%
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services · 5416$11K7.1%
Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors · 2381

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Bowling Green, Virginia, so they do not add up across cities.

Bowling Green, Virginia's figures are part of those of Caroline County, VA ($20.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.8% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Bowling Green is mostly in Caroline County.

See federal money in Caroline County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Bowling Green, Virginia is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Eugene Simon VindmanD-VA-7 · 100% of residentsWith party 88%Missed 0.7%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Caroline County48100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Caroline County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/5108888

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends