These Are The 10 Most Affordable Places In Virginia

A wise sage once said “she works hard for the money” and these places in Virginia definitely treat her right.

You see, these are the places in Virginia where the cost of living is the lowest; where your salary goes the furthest. And when if you have the luxury of choosing where to live in the Old Dominion, then the cost of living should play a role in the decision.

So we did the hard for you and crunched the numbers to find the cities that have lower food, energy, and housing costs. After the dust settled on our analysis of the 59 largest places in Virginia, we were left with this set of the best value for your money:

1. Martinsville
2. Covington
3. Bristol
4. Roanoke
5. Big Stone Gap
6. Bedford
7. Vinton
8. Lynchburg
9. Buena Vista
10. Danville

So listen up Vienna as we explain how we created this ranking, you could learn some things from the rest of the state.

How We Determined The Most Affordable Places To Live In The Old Dominion

There are basic necessities that you have to buy no matter where in the country you live. Those things include:

• Housing
• Food
• Gas
• Health Insurance
• Utilities
• Transportation

You can then compare the cost of these things in each of the places in Virginia to figure out which is the least expensive.

What you are left with is a “Cost of Living Index” that normalizes to 100 for an average place in the United States.

So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 59 places in Virginia that have more than 5,000 people.

And just so you can better understand how the cost of living index works, 100 is the average cost of a place in the United States. A score of 90 means that the place cost 10% less than average. A score of 90 means it’s 10% less expensive.

San Francisco has a score of 243 meaning it’s almost 2.5 times as expensive as the average place in the country.

1. Martinsville

Population: 13,854
Services: 96
Groceries: 96
Healthcare: 88
Housing: 53
Transportation: 90
Utiltiies: 80

2. Covington

Population: 5,903
Services: 97
Groceries: 90
Healthcare: 92
Housing: 47
Transportation: 99
Utiltiies: 107

3. Bristol

Population: 17,747
Services: 100
Groceries: 91
Healthcare: 89
Housing: 59
Transportation: 94
Utiltiies: 98

4. Roanoke

Population: 96,742
Services: 90
Groceries: 90
Healthcare: 96
Housing: 75
Transportation: 88
Utiltiies: 100

5. Big Stone Gap

Population: 5,567
Services: 100
Groceries: 91
Healthcare: 89
Housing: 60
Transportation: 94
Utiltiies: 98

6. Bedford

Population: 6,103
Services: 95
Groceries: 92
Healthcare: 95
Housing: 76
Transportation: 87
Utiltiies: 98

7. Vinton

Population: 8,087
Services: 90
Groceries: 90
Healthcare: 96
Housing: 79
Transportation: 88
Utiltiies: 100

8. Lynchburg

Population: 75,657
Services: 95
Groceries: 92
Healthcare: 95
Housing: 80
Transportation: 87
Utiltiies: 98

9. Buena Vista

Population: 6,679
Services: 97
Groceries: 90
Healthcare: 92
Housing: 68
Transportation: 99
Utiltiies: 107

10. Danville

Population: 43,185
Services: 112
Groceries: 102
Healthcare: 93
Housing: 55
Transportation: 88
Utiltiies: 110

Detailed List Of Affordable Places In Virginia

City	Rank	Population	Services	Grociers	Healthcare
Martinsville	1	13,854	96	96	88
Covington	2	5,903	97	90	92
Bristol	3	17,747	100	91	89
Roanoke	4	96,742	90	90	96
Big Stone Gap	5	5,567	100	91	89
Bedford	6	6,103	95	92	95
Vinton	7	8,087	90	90	96
Lynchburg	8	75,657	95	92	95
Buena Vista	9	6,679	97	90	92
Danville	10	43,185	112	102	93
Salem	11	24,792	90	90	96
Richlands	12	5,811	97	92	108
Emporia	13	5,825	99	96	101
Pulaski	14	9,084	97	92	108
Galax	15	6,942	97	92	108
Marion	16	5,953	97	92	108
Bluefield	17	5,451	97	92	108
South Boston	18	8,127	112	102	93
Waynesboro	19	21,030	95	91	94
Staunton	20	23,906	95	91	94
Abingdon	21	8,166	100	91	89
Petersburg	22	32,226	99	96	101
Wytheville	23	8,205	97	92	108
Radford	24	16,511	97	92	108
Hopewell	25	22,501	99	96	101
Christiansburg	26	20,980	97	92	108
Colonial Heights	27	17,426	99	96	101
Franklin	28	8,531	104	91	109
Ashland	29	7,239	99	96	101
Portsmouth	30	95,786	104	91	109
Richmond	31	205,348	99	96	101
Strasburg	32	6,348	108	100	99
Harrisonburg	33	49,043	99	93	104
Woodstock	34	5,099	108	100	99
Hampton	35	137,471	104	91	109
Front Royal	36	14,537	108	100	99
Lexington	37	6,990	97	90	92
Newport News	38	180,831	104	91	109
Norfolk	39	243,056	104	91	109
Winchester	40	26,330	108	100	99
Dumfries	41	5,001	98	112	94
Manassas Park	42	14,409	92	113	86
Suffolk	43	84,216	104	91	109
Smithfield	44	8,059	104	91	109
Blacksburg	45	42,539	97	92	108
Manassas	46	37,943	98	112	94
Chesapeake	47	223,233	104	91	109
Charlottesville	48	43,223	104	98	105
Virginia Beach	49	439,528	104	91	109
Warrenton	50	9,571	108	100	99
Fredericksburg	51	24,932	98	112	94
Poquoson	52	12,110	104	91	109
Herndon	53	23,424	92	113	86
Belle Haven	54	6,808	104	91	109
Belle Haven	55	6,808	104	91	109
Leesburg	56	43,208	92	113	86
Purcellville	57	7,754	108	100	99
Alexandria	58	140,337	98	112	94
Vienna	59	15,748	92	113	86