Scores by category

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

Safety42#9,031/15,637
Economy4#15,067/15,631
Housing47#7,882/14,977
Health3#15,129/15,609
Healthcare68#5,012/15,650
Environment100#13/15,453
Education73#4,281/15,649
Infrastructure7#14,499/15,650
Community69#4,908/15,651
Leisure & amenities100#49/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Galax, Virginia ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Galax city 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

Traffic deaths · low0.0 /100k
100/100Virginia 10.7 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataGalax city value
Gyms and fitness centers · high7.5 /10k
100/100Virginia 1.6 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGalax city value
Distance to an emergency room · low2.0 mi
100/100Virginia 5.8 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesGalax city value
Grocery stores · high6.0 /10k
100/100Virginia 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGalax city value
Pharmacies · high4.5 /10k
100/100Virginia 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGalax city value
Math scores · high3.65
99/100Virginia 3.27United States 3.032019University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGalax city value

Weaknesses

Life expectancy · low67.5 yrs
1/100Virginia 77.8 yrsUnited States 77.6 yrs2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGalax city value
Average weekly wage · low$813
1/100Virginia $1,540United States $1,5142025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsGalax city value
Premature death · high17,284 /100k
2/100Virginia 7,587 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGalax city value
Property crime rate · high2,942 /100k
2/100Virginia 1,354 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationGalax city value
Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.542
3/100Virginia 0.472United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Flu vaccinations · low25.0%
3/100Virginia 47.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteGalax city value

Trends

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

New homes permittedWorsening
1.3 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
68.5% (2015-2019) → 88.2% (2020-2024)
+20 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
20.3% (2015-2019) → 7.6% (2020-2024)
−13 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Child poverty rateWorsening
33.8% (2015-2019) → 42.8% (2020-2024)
+9 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
High school diploma or higherImproving
75.7% (2015-2019) → 84.4% (2020-2024)
+8.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Poverty rateWorsening
23.8% (2015-2019) → 31.1% (2020-2024)
+7.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%

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, Galax, Virginia improved on 2 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 11 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

Uninsured−13 points20.3% → 7.6%
Broadband+20 points68.5% → 88.2%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Galax, Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	19.4 min2015-2019	22.6 min2020-2024	+3.3 min	Within the margin of error	18%
Bachelor's degree or higher	14.8%2015-2019	19.1%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	62%
Broadband subscriptions	68.5%2015-2019	88.2%2020-2024	+20 points	Improved	90%
Child poverty rate	33.8%2015-2019	42.8%2020-2024	+9 points	Within the margin of error	13%
Effective property tax rate	0.78%2015-2019	0.52%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Within the margin of error	69%
High school diploma or higher	75.7%2015-2019	84.4%2020-2024	+8.7 points	Within the margin of error	93%
Home price to income ratio	2.9×2015-2019	3.7×2020-2024	+0.8×	Within the margin of error	32%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.5192015-2019	0.5422020-2024	+0.023	Within the margin of error	32%
Median household income	$33,5752015-2019	$38,6752020-2024	+15%	Within the margin of error	24%
Poverty rate	23.8%2015-2019	31.1%2020-2024	+7.3 points	Within the margin of error	8%
Rent as share of income	37.3%2015-2019	30.5%2020-2024	−6.8 points	Within the margin of error	88%
Rent-burdened households	56.3%2015-2019	51.1%2020-2024	−5.2 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	20.3%2015-2019	7.6%2020-2024	−13 points	Improved	98%

“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 Galax, Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Galax, 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, Galax, Virginia itself moved +7.5 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

6,726 residents

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 60–69 men (−3.6 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

6,726 residents

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

White77%5,165
Black4.9%†331
Hispanic or Latino14%950

Education

4,462 residents (±271)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

No high school diploma16%698
High school or GED28%1,249
Some college24%1,054

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

2,763 households (±234)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $25k32%897
$25k–50k23%640
$50k–75k14%†376
$75k–100k8.3%†230
$100k–150k12%†327
$150k–200k3.0%†83
$200k or more7.6%†210

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: $100k–150k (+6.4 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,763 households (±234)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Own56%1,556
Rent44%1,207

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−11.8 points).

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

1,056 households (±236)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $75052%†546
$750–1,00022%†228
$1,000–1,50022%†236

Home values

1,556 homes (±215)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $150k54%838
$150k–250k23%†361
$250k–400k17%†257

Age of homes

3,214 homes (±207)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

2010 or later2.6%†82
2000–20096.6%†211
1980–199916%505

Size of homes

3,214 homes (±207)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Studio2.6%†84
1 bedroom6.3%†204
2 bedrooms34%1,107

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,795 workers (±375)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Drive alone83%2,331
Carpool11%†297
Public transit0.0%0
Walk0.2%†5
Bike0.0%0
Work from home5.8%†162
Other0.0%0

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

2,633 workers (±383)

Galax, Virginia
Virginia share

Under 15 min53%1,386
15–29 min25%†669
30–44 min3.0%†79

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Galax city, the county holding most of Galax's residents.

Galax city has 311 employer establishments, 459 for every 10,000 residents (1.85× the US rate of 248; 1.90× Virginia's), with 4,771 paid employees at an average annual pay of $39,625. The Census Bureau also counts 491 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 311; 491 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 459; US 248 · Virginia 241
Paid employees: 4,771
Average annual pay: $39,625; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	39	57.5	2.76×More than typical	493	$60,142	22
Restaurants and other eating places	31	45.7	2.49×More than typical	526	$19,582	—
Full-service restaurants	15	22.1	2.88×More than typical	165	$20,642	—
Limited-service restaurants	15	22.1	2.76×More than typical	358	$19,103	—
Lessors of real estate	12	17.7	1.44×More than typical	27	$54,667	56
Offices of physicians	12	17.7	2.73×More than typical	175	$67,480	—
Religious organizations	12	17.7	3.19×More than typical	40	$15,775	—
Offices of other health practitioners	11	16.2	2.67×More than typical	53	$43,396	10
Banks and credit unions	9	13.3	4.11×Too few to compare	57	$49,035	—
Individual and family services	9	13.3	4.74×Too few to compare	219	$29,315	—
Gasoline stations	8	11.8	3.64×Too few to compare	70	$26,143	—
General merchandise stores	8	11.8	6.68×Too few to compare	413	$34,973	5

Rank places for an industry Open Galax city

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 6,777 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 $286K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Galax, Virginia: $42.53 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $286K; −52% vs FY2025
Per resident: $42.53; US $1,995
Sole-source: 93%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; 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

National Aeronautics and Space Administration$266K93%
Department of the Army$36.2K13%

Top recipients

GRACE ENVIRONMENTAL AND CONSULTING LLC$266K93%
LUJO LLC$14.9K5.2%
MASTERPEACE SERVICES LLC$14.3K5.0%
CULTURED STATUS, LLC$6,9232.4%
VANGUARD INSPECTION SERVICES-$16.2K0.0%

Spending by fiscal year

138.3KFY2017
894.4KFY2018
55.9KFY2019
1.4MFY2020
1.6MFY2021
1.3MFY2022
805.6KFY2023
1.5M

Top industries (NAICS)

Scientific research and development services · 5417$266K93%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$29.2K10%
Waste collection · 5621$6,9232.4%

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Galax, Virginia

HOUSING INSPECTION SERVICES IN RESPONSE TO DR-48XX-VA. 15,000 INSPECTIONS IN SUPPORT OF PRESIDENTIAL DECLARED DISASTER IN THE STATE OF VIRGINIA AS A RESULT OF HURRICANE HELENE.$518.4K
VANGUARD INSPECTION SERVICES· Galax city, VA· Professional services· Oct 3, 2024 – Aug 18, 2026· 70FBR325F00000001
HICAM TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT SUPPORT$266.5K
GRACE ENVIRONMENTAL AND CONSULTING LLC· Galax city, VA· Research & development· Apr 21, 2026 – May 18, 2026· 80NSSC26P0528
BASE YEAR - CUSTODIAL - VA033$43.4K
MASTERPEACE SERVICES LLC· Galax city, VA· Facilities & utilities· Feb 29, 2024 – Feb 19, 2026· W15QKN24P5016

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 7, 2026, loaded Oct 7, 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 Galax, Virginia, so they do not add up across cities.

Galax, Virginia's figures are part of those of Galax city, VA ($286.6K in FY2026), never added to them: 99.8% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Galax is mostly in Galax city.

See federal money in Galax city

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.

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

House

H. Morgan GriffithR-VA-9 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 1.3%

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.

Galax city54100% of residents

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
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
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/5130208

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends