Corporation · Jefferson County, West Virginia

Ranson, West Virginia

Ranson is a corporation in Jefferson County, West Virginia, part of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area. It has 5,729 residents. Ranson, West Virginia has a quality-of-life score of 48 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #8,105 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within West Virginia it ranks #17 of 150 cities and towns. It ranks best on new homes permitted (high), child care cost burden (low) and mental health care shortage (low). It ranks worst on hospital quality rating (low), drought exposure (high) and depression (high).

48Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #8,105 of 15,651 cities and towns
West Virginia: #17 of 150 in WV
Population: 5,729 (2020-2024)
Land area: 8 mi²
Density: 707.0 /mi²
FIPS code: 5466988

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.

Safety71#4,522/15,637
Economy61#6,135/15,631
Housing99#171/14,977
Health15#13,293/15,609
Healthcare31#10,748/15,650
Environment55#6,954/15,453
Education23#12,036/15,649
Infrastructure57#6,747/15,650
Community25#11,712/15,651
Leisure & amenities57#6,741/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

New homes permitted · high117.7 /1k
100/100West Virginia 2.2 /1kUnited States 4.2 /1kSep 2025–Aug 2026U.S. Census BureauProvisional data
Child care cost burden · low20.0%
94/100West Virginia 35.5%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJefferson County value
Mental health care shortage · low0.0
91/100West Virginia 14.7United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationJefferson County value
Rent as share of income · low22.6%
89/100West Virginia 29.4%United States 30.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25071
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.363
86/100West Virginia 0.471United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Rent-burdened households · low28.5%
86/100West Virginia 48.8%United States 51.1%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25070

Weaknesses

Hospital quality rating · low1.0
1/100West Virginia 2.8United States 3.2Jul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesJefferson County value
Drought exposure · high98%
3/100West Virginia 31%United States 43%Oct 2025–Sep 2026National Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAAJefferson County value
Depression · high29.4%
3/100West Virginia 31.9%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Access to exercise opportunities · low35.1%
4/100West Virginia 58.8%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJefferson County value
Frequent mental distress · high22.0%
6/100West Virginia 23.4%United States 18.6%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
Dentists · low30 /100k
11/100West Virginia 60 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteJefferson County value

Trends

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

PopulationRising
5,123 (2015-2019) → 5,729 (2020-2024)
+12%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedImproving
4.1 /1k (2021) → 117.6 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
+2,790%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateImproving
36.9% (2015-2019) → 17.6% (2020-2024)
−19 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
46.2% (2015-2019) → 28.5% (2020-2024)
−18 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
82.9% (2015-2019) → 95.2% (2020-2024)
+12 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Poverty rateImproving
20.2% (2015-2019) → 12.0% (2020-2024)
−8.2 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, Ranson, West Virginia improved on 3 of 13 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.

Improved3

Child poverty−19 points36.9% → 17.6%
Broadband+12 points82.9% → 95.2%
Household income+34%$66,724 → $89,523

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Ranson, West Virginia between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	34.8 min2015-2019	30.7 min2020-2024	−4.1 min	Within the margin of error	86%
Bachelor's degree or higher	20.8%2015-2019	18.9%2020-2024	−1.9 points	Within the margin of error	17%
Broadband subscriptions	82.9%2015-2019	95.2%2020-2024	+12 points	Improved	70%
Child poverty rate	36.9%2015-2019	17.6%2020-2024	−19 points	Improved	93%
Effective property tax rate	0.74%2015-2019	0.61%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	42%
High school diploma or higher	93.0%2015-2019	87.2%2020-2024	−5.8 points	Within the margin of error	4%
Home price to income ratio	2.8×2015-2019	2.7×2020-2024	−0.0×	Within the margin of error	81%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3772015-2019	0.3632020-2024	−0.014	Within the margin of error	63%
Median household income	$66,7242015-2019	$89,5232020-2024	+34%	Improved	64%
Poverty rate	20.2%2015-2019	12.0%2020-2024	−8.2 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Rent as share of income	26.5%2015-2019	22.6%2020-2024	−3.9 points	Within the margin of error	78%
Rent-burdened households	46.2%2015-2019	28.5%2020-2024	−18 points	Within the margin of error	92%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.4%2015-2019	10.0%2020-2024	+1.6 points	Within the margin of error	29%

“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 Ranson, West Virginia five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Ranson, 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, Ranson, West Virginia itself moved +6.6 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

5,729 residents (±22)

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

2,351 households (±195)

Ranson, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Under $25k7.5%†177
$25k–50k13%†306
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,351 households (±195)

Ranson, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Own72%1,701
Rent28%650

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+13.1 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

3,391 workers (±250)

Ranson, West Virginia
West Virginia share

Drive alone73%2,468
Carpool11%†389
Public transit0.5%†17

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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-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 Jefferson County, the county holding most of Ranson's residents.

Jefferson County has 976 employer establishments, 163 for every 10,000 residents (0.66× the US rate of 248; 0.81× West Virginia's), with 13,457 paid employees at an average annual pay of $41,880. The Census Bureau also counts 4,599 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 976; 4,599 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 163; US 248 · West Virginia 202
Paid employees: 13,457
Average annual pay: $41,880; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	93	15.6	0.85×About typical	1,482	$19,243	11
Specialty trade contractors	68	11.4	0.74×Fewer than typical	258	$50,961	322
Ambulatory health care services	62	10.4	0.50×Fewer than typical	463	$71,952	170
Lessors of real estate	52	8.7	0.71×Fewer than typical	137	$40,241	452
Full-service restaurants	44	7.4	0.96×About typical	646	$22,254	7
Services to buildings and dwellings	40	6.7	0.99×About typical	382	$33,408	274
Religious organizations	37	6.2	1.12×About typical	207	$24,130	—
Limited-service restaurants	32	5.4	0.67×Fewer than typical	680	$17,393	—
Building equipment contractors	28	4.7	0.78×Fewer than typical	128	$60,125	70
Construction of buildings	28	4.7	0.62×Fewer than typical	120	$51,708	157
Real estate agents and brokers	25	4.2	0.86×About typical	43	$54,698	180
Automotive repair and maintenance	24	4	0.80×Fewer than typical	138	$48,986	36

Rank places for an industry Open Jefferson County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 59,730 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 $4.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Ranson, West Virginia: $768 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $4.4M; −17% vs FY2025
Per resident: $768; US $1,994
Sole-source: 40%; US 30%
Single offer: 9.7%; 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

Internal Revenue Service$1.8M41%
Defense Logistics Agency$975.7K22%
U.S. Coast Guard$678.1K15%
Public Buildings Service$544.3K12%
Offices, Boards and Divisions$239.5K5.4%
Agricultural Research Service$103.7K2.4%
Department of the Navy$25.2K0.6%
Federal Acquisition Service$8,9530.2%

Top recipients

SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION$774.3K18%
AERO INTERNATIONAL, LLC$682.9K16%
TRI COAST-PAC TECH JV 2$513.4K12%
CTG FEDERAL, LLC$331.6K7.5%
ALLIED DEFENSE INDUSTRIES, LLC$317.7K7.2%

Spending by fiscal year

2.5MFY2017
2.3MFY2018
2.3MFY2019
2.9MFY2020
3.1MFY2021
3.6MFY2022
4.1MFY2023
6M

Top industries (NAICS)

Computer systems design and related services · 5415$2M46%
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing · 3364$718.2K16%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$533.3K12%
Other professional, scientific, and technical services · 5419$240.3K5.5%
Facilities support services · 5612$128.1K2.9%
Support activities for water transportation · 4883$121.7K

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Ranson, West Virginia

LANGUAGE SERVICES$1.8M
FRIENDS INTERPRETING SERVICES LLC· Jefferson County, WV· Professional services· Aug 25, 2021 – Aug 17, 2026· 15JCRM21F00000086
IN PERSON ASL INTERPRETER SERVICES$216.2K
FRIENDS INTERPRETING SERVICES LLC· Jefferson County, WV· Professional services· Jul 14, 2023 – Apr 27, 2026· N6852023F0186

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

Ranson, West Virginia's figures are part of those of Jefferson County, WV ($169.9M in FY2026), never added to them: 2.6% of that total.

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

See federal money in Jefferson 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.

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

House

Riley M. MooreR-WV-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 1.8%

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.

Jefferson County69100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV86

Other cities and towns in Jefferson 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/5466988

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends