Census-designated place · Albemarle County, Virginia

Rivanna, Virginia

Rivanna is a census-designated place in Albemarle County, Virginia, part of the Charlottesville, VA metro area. It has 2,211 residents. Rivanna, Virginia has a quality-of-life score of 98 out of 100 (very high), ranking #285 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Virginia it ranks #54 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on bachelor's degree or higher (high), flu vaccinations (high) and mammography screening (high). It ranks worst on job growth (low), pharmacies (low) and drought exposure (high).

98Very high

Quality-of-life score: #285 of 15,651 cities and towns
Virginia: #54 of 375 in VA
Population: 2,211 (2020-2024)
Land area: 3 mi²
Density: 812.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 5167331

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 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.

Safety70#4,690/15,637
Economy81#2,979/15,631
Housing64#5,381/14,977
Health97#483/15,609
Healthcare94#899/15,650
Environment93#1,073/15,453
Education99#118/15,649
Infrastructure88#1,828/15,650
Community83#2,691/15,651
Leisure & amenities71#4,570/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Bachelor's degree or higher · high80.2%
99/100Virginia 42.2%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Flu vaccinations · high60.0%
99/100Virginia 47.0%United States 44.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAlbemarle County value
Mammography screening · high61.0%
99/100Virginia 47.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAlbemarle County value
Food insecurity · low5.9%
99/100Virginia 13.5%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Lack of reliable transportation · low4.2%
99/100Virginia 7.7%United States 8.3%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Primary care physicians · high138 /100k
97/100Virginia 76 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAlbemarle County value

Weaknesses

Job growth · low-3.5%
5/100Virginia -0.2%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataAlbemarle County value
Pharmacies · low0.7 /10k
6/100Virginia 1.7 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsAlbemarle County value
Drought exposure · high89%
7/100Virginia 70%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAAlbemarle County value
Home price to income ratio · high5.8×
14/100Virginia 4.1×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Unemployment rate · high8.1%
16/100Virginia 3.4%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025High uncertainty
Distance to an airport · high76 mi
20/100Virginia 32 miUnited States 33 mi2025Federal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census BureauAlbemarle County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
1,851 (2015-2019) → 2,211 (2020-2024)
+19%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
68.3% (2015-2019) → 0.0% (2020-2024)
−68 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
24.8% (2016-2020) → 13.6% (2020-2024)
−11 pts4 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.6% → 30.6%
Child poverty rateImproving
11.7% (2015-2019) → 2.1% (2020-2024)
−9.6 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
72.1% (2015-2019) → 80.2% (2020-2024)
+8.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
High school diploma or higherImproving
94.4% (2015-2019) → 99.1% (2020-2024)
+4.8 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, Rivanna, Virginia improved on 1 of 8 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 7 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.

Improved1

Inequality−0.0870.490 → 0.404

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 8 measures

Change of every measure of Rivanna, Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.6 min2015-2019	23.3 min2020-2024	−0.3 min	Within the margin of error	51%
Bachelor's degree or higher	72.1%2015-2019	80.2%2020-2024	+8.1 points	Within the margin of error	84%
Broadband subscriptions	93.8%2015-2019	98.2%2020-2024	+4.4 points	Within the margin of error	28%
Effective property tax rate	0.79%2015-2019	0.77%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	20%
High school diploma or higher	94.4%2015-2019	99.1%2020-2024	+4.8 points	Within the margin of error	80%
Home price to income ratio	5.1×2015-2019	5.8×2020-2024	+0.8×	Within the margin of error	32%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4902015-2019	0.4042020-2024	−0.087	Improved	94%
Median household income	$127,9292015-2019	$146,3282020-2024	+14%	Within the margin of error	23%

“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 Rivanna, Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Rivanna, 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, Rivanna, Virginia itself moved +8.6 points in standing on average over the same 8 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

2,211 residents (±353)

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

930 households (±128)

Rivanna, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $25k4.5%†42
$25k–50k5.1%†47
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

930 households (±128)

Rivanna, Virginia
Virginia share

Own97%900
Rent3.2%†30

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

738 workers (±174)

Rivanna, Virginia
Virginia share

Drive alone68%†504
Carpool2.4%†18
Public transit

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Charlottesville, VA

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 Albemarle County, the county holding most of Rivanna's residents.

Albemarle County has 2,963 employer establishments, 256 for every 10,000 residents (1.03× the US rate of 248; 1.06× Virginia's), with 42,901 paid employees at an average annual pay of $65,241. The Census Bureau also counts 11,702 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 2,963; 11,702 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 256; US 248 · Virginia 241
Paid employees: 42,901
Average annual pay: $65,241; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	329	28.4	1.36×More than typical	4,371	$109,595	720
Lessors of real estate	179	15.5	1.26×More than typical	988	$60,400	1,232
Specialty trade contractors	168	14.5	0.94×About typical	1,580	$60,920	520
Restaurants and other eating places	156	13.5	0.73×Fewer than typical	2,985	$22,617	39
Offices of physicians	114	9.9	1.52×More than typical	1,192	$112,763	203
Construction of buildings	107	9.3	1.22×About typical	562	$89,751	269
Management, scientific and technical consulting	103	8.9	1.33×More than typical	651	$105,542	962
Offices of other health practitioners	99	8.6	1.41×More than typical	545	$51,002	398
Services to buildings and dwellings	97	8.4	1.24×About typical	651	$43,407	502
Religious organizations	83	7.2	1.29×More than typical	341	$26,264	—
Full-service restaurants	76	6.6	0.86×About typical	1,575	$25,566	21
Schools, colleges and instruction	72	6.2	1.78×More than typical	1,208	$52,709	760

Rank places for an industry Open Albemarle County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 115,664 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 $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Rivanna, Virginia: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; 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

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

8KFY2017
240.4KFY2018
18.6KFY2019
1.9KFY2022
-1.9KFY2023
153KFY2025

What was bought

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 Rivanna, Virginia, so they do not add up across cities.

Rivanna, Virginia's figures are part of those of Albemarle County, VA ($76M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

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

See federal money in Albemarle 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.

Rivanna, Virginia is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Albemarle County97100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Charlottesville, VA96

Other cities and towns in Albemarle 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/5167331

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends