The 10 Best Suburbs In Virginia For 2023


The best suburbs in Virginia are Vienna and Falls Church for 2023 based on Saturday Night Science.

Are you sick of being a city slicker?

Do you long for life in suburban Virginia? Where you can drive an overly-large vehicle to the store for groceries and schlep the kids around to practices and appointments without worrying about a parking space.

We do, too.

If you wanted to move out to the suburbs of Richmond, where would you go? And how would you decide on the ranking factors to help you pick which Virginia suburb was best?

No worries. We got it all figured out here using Saturday Night Science.

These are the 10 best suburbs in the Old Dominion

  1. Vienna
  2. Falls Church
  3. Poquoson
  4. Leesburg
  5. Alexandria
  6. Herndon
  7. Fairfax
  8. Smithfield
  9. Manassas Park
  10. Manassas

Vienna is the place to be when it comes to being a soccer mom in suburban Virginia.

So if you’re thinking of packing up your mini van and making a move to a quiet place to live in Virginia, we’ve got you covered.

Keep on reading for a detailed methodology. Or, check out the best places to live in Virginia and the best places to raise a family in Virginia.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


Best Suburbs In Virginia For 2023

Vienna, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Idawriter | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 16,465
Median Income: $200,938
Median Home Price: $827,800
More on Vienna:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Vienna is located 8 miles west of Arlington.

Falls Church, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Payton Chung | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 14,494
Median Income: $155,071
Median Home Price: $838,300
More on Falls Church:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Falls Church is located 3 miles west of Arlington.

Poquoson, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Chrisfortier at English Wikipedia | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 12,382
Median Income: $112,026
Median Home Price: $358,700
More on Poquoson:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Poquoson is located 14 miles north of Norfolk.

Leesburg, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Wallygva | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 48,223
Median Income: $116,350
Median Home Price: $490,500
More on Leesburg:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Leesburg is located 29 miles west of Arlington.

Alexandria, VA

Source: Wikipedia User ALXCHO | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 158,185
Median Income: $105,450
Median Home Price: $579,100
More on Alexandria:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Alexandria is located 4 miles south of Arlington.

Herndon, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Dion Hinchcliffe | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 24,574
Median Income: $117,741
Median Home Price: $470,200
More on Herndon:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Herndon is located 16 miles west of Arlington.

Fairfax, VA

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 23,980
Median Income: $118,492
Median Home Price: $596,800
More on Fairfax:  Data | Cost Of Living

Fairfax is located 10 miles west of Arlington.

Smithfield, VA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 8,513
Median Income: $92,913
Median Home Price: $313,300
More on Smithfield:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Smithfield is located 20 miles west of Norfolk.

Manassas Park, VA

Source: Wikipedia User PierreSelim | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 17,081
Median Income: $90,544
Median Home Price: $330,200
More on Manassas Park:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Manassas Park is located 20 miles west of Arlington.

Manassas, VA

Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 42,596
Median Income: $101,934
Median Home Price: $356,500
More on Manassas:  Data | Crime Report | Cost Of Living

Manassas is located 22 miles west of Arlington.

Methodology:How we crunched the suburb numbers for the Old Dominion

We have to use Saturday Night Science and look at several metrics to give you the best suburbs in Virginia. We want to measure the type of place around major cities that people arguing at a bar would say makes it the “best suburb.”

First, we had to define a suburb. Using U.S. Census data produced for the state of Virginia, we looked at every town with at least 2,000 residents, and within 30 miles of a city that’s over 200,000 people.

In other words, suburbs.

We paid particular attention to the following criteria:

  • Median Home Values
  • Median Income
  • Population Density (Higher is Better)
  • Unemployment Rates
  • Commute Time
  • Education Levels
  • Health Insurance Coverage
  • Poverty Rates

We ranked each suburb in Virginia across these criteria from one to 20, with one being the best.

We then took the average rank across all criteria, with the town posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title “Best Suburb To Live In Virginia.”

The result is some of the safest, quietest, and ideal places to live in Virginia

Read on to see why Vienna is the ‘burb with the most, while Petersburg is probably not the best place to live in Virginia.

Summary: There You Have It – The Best Suburbs In Virginia

If you’re measuring the locations in Virginia where there are lots to do, and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.

Here’s a look at the worst suburbs in Virginia according to the data:

  1. Petersburg
  2. Hopewell
  3. Portsmouth

For more Virginia reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Suburbs In Virginia

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Price
1 Vienna 16,465 $200,938 $827,800
2 Falls Church 14,494 $155,071 $838,300
3 Poquoson 12,382 $112,026 $358,700
4 Leesburg 48,223 $116,350 $490,500
5 Alexandria 158,185 $105,450 $579,100
6 Herndon 24,574 $117,741 $470,200
7 Fairfax 23,980 $118,492 $596,800
8 Smithfield 8,513 $92,913 $313,300
9 Manassas Park 17,081 $90,544 $330,200
10 Manassas 42,596 $101,934 $356,500
11 Hampton 136,748 $59,380 $191,000
12 Dumfries 5,669 $71,784 $226,100
13 Windsor 2,759 $54,444 $186,300
14 Newport News 185,069 $57,463 $204,900
15 Suffolk 93,268 $81,883 $273,600
16 Colonial Heights 18,127 $65,570 $188,900
17 Ashland 7,478 $55,521 $210,100
18 Portsmouth 97,454 $54,020 $182,700
19 Hopewell 23,020 $44,209 $127,300
20 Petersburg 33,229 $44,890 $119,200
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.