City · Raleigh County, West Virginia

Beckley, West Virginia

Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, part of the Beckley, WV metro area. It has 16,818 residents. Beckley, West Virginia has a quality-of-life score of 16 out of 100 (very low), ranking #13,101 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within West Virginia it ranks #108 of 150 cities and towns. It ranks best on pharmacies (high), hot days (low) and average commute time (low). It ranks worst on injury deaths (high), frequent mental distress (high) and drug overdose deaths (high).

16Very low

Quality-of-life score: #13,101 of 15,651 cities and towns
West Virginia: #108 of 150 in WV
Population: 16,818 (2020-2024)
Land area: 9 mi²
Density: 1,770.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 5405332

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.

Safety13#13,601/15,637
Economy6#14,676/15,631
Housing38#9,267/14,977
Health0#15,542/15,609
Healthcare37#9,934/15,650
Environment95#784/15,453
Education43#8,905/15,649
Infrastructure22#12,282/15,650
Community7#14,480/15,651
Leisure & amenities38#9,770/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Pharmacies · high3.6 /10k
99/100West Virginia 2.8 /10kUnited States 1.8 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsRaleigh County value
Hot days · low1 days
96/100West Virginia 10 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationRaleigh County value
Average commute time · low16.5 min
96/100West Virginia 26.6 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Effective property tax rate · low0.54%
85/100West Virginia 0.50%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low3.6%
80/100West Virginia 7.3%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010
High ozone days · low0 days
76/100West Virginia 0 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyRaleigh County value

Weaknesses

Injury deaths · high222 /100k
0/100West Virginia 151 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRaleigh County value
Frequent mental distress · high24.7%
1/100West Virginia 23.4%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Drug overdose deaths · high58.0 /100k
1/100West Virginia 36.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataRaleigh County value
Depression · high31.6%
1/100West Virginia 31.9%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Preventable hospital stays · high5,288 /100k
1/100West Virginia 4,063 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRaleigh County value
Premature death · high17,284 /100k
2/100West Virginia 12,969 /100kUnited States 8,123 /100k2021-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteRaleigh County value

Trends

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

Child poverty rateWorsening
22.2% (2015-2019) → 39.9% (2020-2024)
+18 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
44.3% (2015-2019) → 56.5% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Poverty rateWorsening
18.9% (2015-2019) → 28.9% (2020-2024)
+10 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
0.1 /1k (2021) → 0.1 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−49%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
75.9% (2015-2019) → 82.8% (2020-2024)
+6.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
22.8% (2015-2019) → 29.2% (2020-2024)
+6.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%

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, Beckley, West Virginia improved on 4 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 8 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.

Improved4

Unemployment−3.2 points6.4% → 3.2%
Uninsured−5.6 points9.2% → 3.6%
Bachelor's++6.3 points22.8% → 29.2%
Broadband+6.8 points75.9% → 82.8%

Declined2

Child poverty+18 points22.2% → 39.9%
Poverty+10 points18.9% → 28.9%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Beckley, West Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	18.3 min2015-2019	16.5 min2020-2024	−1.8 min	Within the margin of error	69%
Bachelor's degree or higher	22.8%2015-2019	29.2%2020-2024	+6.3 points	Improved	76%
Broadband subscriptions	75.9%2015-2019	82.8%2020-2024	+6.8 points	Improved	42%
Child poverty rate	22.2%2015-2019	39.9%2020-2024	+18 points	Declined	6%
Effective property tax rate	0.64%2015-2019	0.54%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	35%
High school diploma or higher	86.7%2015-2019	91.0%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	3.4×2020-2024	+0.7×	Within the margin of error	38%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4822015-2019	0.5362020-2024	+0.054	Within the margin of error	15%
Median household income	$39,4552015-2019	$45,8262020-2024	+16%	Within the margin of error	26%
Poverty rate	18.9%2015-2019	28.9%2020-2024	+10 points	Declined	4%
Rent as share of income	28.2%2015-2019	34.1%2020-2024	+5.9 points	Within the margin of error	19%
Rent-burdened households	44.3%2015-2019	56.5%2020-2024	+12 points	Within the margin of error	19%
Unemployment rate	6.4%2015-2019	3.2%2020-2024	−3.2 points	Improved	90%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	9.2%2015-2019	3.6%2020-2024	−5.6 points	Improved	88%

“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 Beckley, West Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Beckley, West 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, Beckley, West Virginia itself moved −7.7 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

16,818 residents (±27)

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

7,050 households (±375)

Beckley, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Under $25k32%2,228
$25k–50k21%1,489
$50k–75k14%954

Homes

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

Owners and renters

7,050 households (±375)

Beckley, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Own55%3,907
Rent45%3,143

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (−6.4 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

6,313 workers (±498)

Beckley, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Drive alone80%5,031
Carpool4.5%†287
Public transit0.3%†22

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 Beckley, WV

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 Raleigh County, the county holding most of Beckley's residents.

Raleigh County has 1,713 employer establishments, 236 for every 10,000 residents (0.95× the US rate of 248; 1.17× West Virginia's), with 26,532 paid employees at an average annual pay of $46,182. The Census Bureau also counts 3,906 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,713; 3,906 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 236; US 248 · West Virginia 202
Paid employees: 26,532
Average annual pay: $46,182; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	210	29	1.39×More than typical	2,457	$59,963	248
Restaurants and other eating places	104	14.3	0.78×Fewer than typical	2,657	$19,503	11
Offices of physicians	89	12.3	1.90×More than typical	976	$78,622	57
Specialty trade contractors	68	9.4	0.61×Fewer than typical	666	$56,686	206
Construction of buildings	57	7.9	1.04×About typical	252	$49,528	100
Limited-service restaurants	57	7.9	0.98×About typical	1,219	$18,221	5
Religious organizations	57	7.9	1.42×More than typical	273	$24,480	—
Lessors of real estate	53	7.3	0.59×Fewer than typical	171	$37,187	374
Offices of other health practitioners	46	6.3	1.04×About typical	302	$42,166	118
Services to buildings and dwellings	44	6.1	0.90×About typical	358	$28,413	269
Automotive repair and maintenance	39	5.4	1.07×About typical	221	$37,760	55
Gasoline stations	39	5.4	1.66×More than typical	512	$30,172	—

Rank places for an industry Open Raleigh County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 72,504 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 $3.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Beckley, West Virginia: $201 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $3.4M; +66% vs FY2025
Per resident: $201; US $1,994
Sole-source: 4.4%; US 30%
Single offer: 13%; 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 Veterans Affairs$3M88%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$225.8K6.7%
Internal Revenue Service$108.9K3.2%
Public Buildings Service$33.2K1.0%
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention$31.3K0.9%
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management$7,2690.2%
Defense Logistics Agency$1,2610.0%
Department of the Army$9020.0%

Top recipients

SAWTOOTH CONSTRUCTION JV II LLC$1.7M51%
JAN-CARE AMBULANCE OF RALEIGH COUNTY, INC.$445.6K13%
DISTRICT VETERANS CONTRACTING, INC.$264.3K7.8%
SEVEN CORNERS INC$224.2K6.6%
COMMONWEALTH HOME HEALTH CARE, INC.$102.1K3.0%

Spending by fiscal year

1.1MFY2017
1.9MFY2018
1.7MFY2019
867.8KFY2020
1.6MFY2021
1.5MFY2022
2.7MFY2023
1.1M

Top industries (NAICS)

Nonresidential building construction · 2362$2M60%
Other ambulatory health care services · 6219$445.6K13%
General medical and surgical hospitals · 6221$224.2K6.6%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$123.9K3.7%
Consumer goods rental · 5322$102.1K3.0%
Advertising, public relations, and related services · 5418

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 Beckley, West Virginia, so they do not add up across cities.

Beckley, West Virginia's figures are part of those of Raleigh County, WV ($53.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 6.3% of that total.

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

See federal money in Raleigh 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.

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

House

Carol D. MillerR-WV-1 · 100% of residentsWith party 100%Missed 5.3%

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.

Raleigh County23100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Beckley, WV17

Other cities and towns in Raleigh 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
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/5405332

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends