Town · Halifax County, Virginia

South Boston, Virginia

South Boston is a town in Halifax County, Virginia. It has 7,853 residents. South Boston, Virginia has a quality-of-life score of 21 out of 100 (low), ranking #12,357 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Virginia it ranks #363 of 375 cities and towns. It ranks best on average commute time (low), child care cost burden (low) and drinking water violations (low). It ranks worst on broadband subscriptions (low), preventable hospital stays (high) and primary care shortage (high).

21Low

Quality-of-life score: #12,357 of 15,651 cities and towns
Virginia: #363 of 375 in VA
Population: 7,853 (2020-2024)
Land area: 13 mi²
Density: 601.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 5173712

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.

Safety31#10,828/15,637
Economy12#13,775/15,631
Housing50#7,437/14,977
Health6#14,729/15,609
Healthcare10#14,018/15,650
Environment87#1,942/15,453
Education70#4,744/15,649
Infrastructure17#12,969/15,650
Community25#11,744/15,651
Leisure & amenities18#12,824/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Average commute time · low15.9 min
91/100Virginia 27.3 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Child care cost burden · low22.4%
87/100Virginia 24.4%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHalifax County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100Virginia 0United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHalifax County value
Social associations · high13.8 /10k
85/100Virginia 11.1 /10kUnited States 9.1 /10k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHalifax County value
Students per teacher · low12.1×
81/100Virginia 13.4×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsHalifax County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.60%
80/100Virginia 0.78%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090

Weaknesses

Broadband subscriptions · low73.5%
3/100Virginia 91.0%United States 91.0%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B28002
Preventable hospital stays · high4,756 /100k
3/100Virginia 2,649 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHalifax County value
Primary care shortage · high19.0
3/100Virginia 6.6United States 6.2Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationHalifax County value
Mental health care shortage · high19.0
4/100Virginia 14.8United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationHalifax County value
Premature death · high14,479 /100k
5/100Virginia 7,587 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteHalifax County value
Drought exposure · high91%
6/100Virginia 70%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAHalifax County value

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
19.2% (2015-2019) → 42.1% (2020-2024)
+23 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
60.5% (2015-2019) → 73.5% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateWorsening
17.1% (2015-2019) → 26.9% (2020-2024)
+9.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
High school diploma or higherImproving
80.0% (2015-2019) → 86.8% (2020-2024)
+6.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
11.8% (2015-2019) → 5.2% (2020-2024)
−6.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%
Home price to income ratioWorsening
3.1× (2015-2019) → 3.9× (2020-2024)
+24%5 yearsCensus table B25077US 3.5× → 4.1×

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, South Boston, Virginia improved on 2 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 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

Uninsured−6.5 points11.8% → 5.2%
Broadband+13 points60.5% → 73.5%

Declined2

Child poverty+23 points19.2% → 42.1%
Poverty+9.8 points17.1% → 26.9%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of South Boston, Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.4 min2015-2019	15.9 min2020-2024	+0.5 min	Within the margin of error	41%
Bachelor's degree or higher	19.3%2015-2019	21.2%2020-2024	+1.9 points	Within the margin of error	42%
Broadband subscriptions	60.5%2015-2019	73.5%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	73%
Child poverty rate	19.2%2015-2019	42.1%2020-2024	+23 points	Declined	3%
Effective property tax rate	0.60%2015-2019	0.60%2020-2024	−0 points	Within the margin of error	16%
High school diploma or higher	80.0%2015-2019	86.8%2020-2024	+6.7 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Home price to income ratio	3.1×2015-2019	3.9×2020-2024	+0.8×	Within the margin of error	33%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4692015-2019	0.4812020-2024	+0.013	Within the margin of error	40%
Median household income	$42,3112015-2019	$44,0522020-2024	+4.1%	Within the margin of error	11%
Poverty rate	17.1%2015-2019	26.9%2020-2024	+9.8 points	Declined	4%
Rent as share of income	30.4%2015-2019	30.8%2020-2024	+0.4 points	Within the margin of error	51%
Rent-burdened households	51.1%2015-2019	53.1%2020-2024	+2 points	Within the margin of error	48%
Unemployment rate	6.8%2015-2019	5.2%2020-2024	−1.6 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	11.8%2015-2019	5.2%2020-2024	−6.5 points	Improved	91%

“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 South Boston, Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of South Boston, 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, South Boston, Virginia itself moved −2.2 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

7,853 residents (±28)

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

2,974 households (±227)

South Boston, Virginia
Virginia share

Under $25k33%987
$25k–50k21%637
$50k–75k12%†364

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,974 households (±227)

South Boston, Virginia
Virginia share

Own51%1,512
Rent49%1,462

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,641 workers (±334)

South Boston, Virginia
Virginia share

Drive alone83%2,203
Carpool11%†293
Public transit0.2%†6

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 Halifax County, the county holding most of South Boston's residents.

Halifax County has 656 employer establishments, 196 for every 10,000 residents (0.79× the US rate of 248; 0.81× Virginia's), with 9,748 paid employees at an average annual pay of $47,509. The Census Bureau also counts 2,052 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 656; 2,052 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 196; US 248 · Virginia 241
Paid employees: 9,748
Average annual pay: $47,509; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	55	16.4	0.79×Fewer than typical	575	$69,762	96
Religious organizations	46	13.7	2.48×More than typical	171	$14,146	—
Restaurants and other eating places	43	12.8	0.70×Fewer than typical	806	$16,043	15
Specialty trade contractors	41	12.2	0.79×Fewer than typical	375	$61,520	181
Truck transportation	29	8.7	1.71×More than typical	439	$55,036	64
Limited-service restaurants	25	7.5	0.93×About typical	544	$14,686	9
Offices of physicians	24	7.2	1.11×About typical	206	$122,675	15
Automotive repair and maintenance	19	5.7	1.13×About typical	77	$45,494	64
Construction of buildings	19	5.7	0.75×Fewer than typical	98	$51,439	76
Building equipment contractors	17	5.1	0.84×About typical	291	$64,749	34
Full-service restaurants	17	5.1	0.66×Fewer than typical	256	$18,992	3
Grocery and convenience stores	16	4.8	1.61×More than typical	270	$20,948	9

Rank places for an industry Open Halifax County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 33,470 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 -$102 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in South Boston, Virginia: -$0.01 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: -$102; −101% vs FY2025
Per resident: -$0.01; 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

GLOSTER FURNITURE, INC.$00.0%
HEALTH FACILITY INSTITUTE-$1020.0%

Spending by fiscal year

10.5KFY2017
4.6KFY2018
6.6KFY2019
8.2KFY2020
5.6KFY2021
3.1KFY2022
18.6KFY2023
12.1KFY2024

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 South Boston, Virginia, so they do not add up across cities.

South Boston, Virginia's figures are part of those of Halifax County, VA ($764.3K 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: South Boston is mostly in Halifax County.

See federal money in Halifax 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.

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

House

John J. McGuire IIIR-VA-5 · 100% of residentsWith party 99%Missed 1.6%

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.

Halifax County31100% of residents

Other cities and towns in Halifax 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/5173712

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends