McDowell County, West Virginia

McDowell County has a population of 17,943 and has shrunk 11.7% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $50,000, about 1.6 times the county's median household income of $31,559.

Home price
$50,000
Income
$31,559
Population
17,943
Unemployment
8.2%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$50,000county
Median gross rent$643county
Median year homes here were built1958county
Share of homes built before 198075.7%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile22.7%county
Share of homes that are vacant30.7%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented22.7%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use3.4%county
Typical monthly rent$1,273(statewide)
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$869county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$662county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$1,146county
Home insurance / yr$1,860(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living88.3(statewide)
Median household income$31,559county
Family health premium / yr$25,483(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$9,692(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.838(statewide)
Poverty rate34.2%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home4.5%county
Unemployment rate8.2%county
Share of adults in the labor force27.1%county
Share of workers who are self-employed0.8%county
Share of workers employed by government28.8%county
Share of workers in the largest industry30.0%county
Economic output per resident$40,563county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.67%county
Top state income tax4.82%(statewide)
Capital gains tax4.82%(statewide)
Combined sales tax6.60%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time36.0 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service40 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport5918county
Miles to nearest general aviation field15 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here0county
Passenger train stations and the railway network0county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station46 micounty
Households without a vehicle10.7%county
Traffic deaths27.9county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,000-5.8(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher6.8%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher75.5%county
Public schools in the county9county
Public school enrollment2312county
Students per full-time teacher14.4county
Elementary schools6county
Middle schools1county
High schools1county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above0county
Two-year institutions0county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution23 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians27county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county1county
Hospitals here with an emergency department1county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here3(statewide)
Fine particulate matter6.6 µgcounty
Without health insurance8.8%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year28.6%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year34.8%county
Frequent mental distress23.2%county
No leisure-time physical activity41.7%county
Diagnosed diabetes22.8%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population17,943county
Land area in square miles533county
People per square mile of land33.6county
Supermarkets and grocery stores6county
Convenience stores0county
Share living far from a food store0.2%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract0.0%county
Population change since 2020-11.7%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents-12county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents0county
Median age43.7 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1818.2%county
Share of residents 65 and over21.9%county
Share of households that are one person36.4%county
Share of residents born outside the United States1.6%county
Second languages2.4%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls22.0%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents382county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents-6county
Households that moved in176county
Households that moved away212county
Average income of arriving households$34,841county
Average income of departing households$43,118county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes0county
Housing units authorised in the latest year0county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings8.6%(statewide)
Violent crime rate249(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature54.2°Fcounty
Annual precipitation45.2 incounty
Annual snowfall22.9 in(statewide)
Average daily solar energy4.07 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F4 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing110 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 7a(statewide)
Frost-free days197 dayscounty
Average last spring frostApr 11county
Average first fall frostOct 25county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$185county
Electric utilities serving this county1county
Electricity price per kWh16.8¢county
Household electricity use1,106 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$21.45(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity67.2%county
Homes heated by utility gas10.8%county
Homes heated by propane5.8%county
Homes heated by fuel oil4.5%county
Homes heated by wood6.0%county
Households with broadband85.5%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk84.7county
Coastal flood risk0.0county
Drought risk0.0county
Landslide risk95.3county
Hail risk23.9county
Earthquake risk58.6county
Tornado risk11.1county
Tropical cyclone risk55.2county
Extreme heat risk12.4county
Winter weather risk27.4county
Strong wind risk72.0county
Wildfire risk69.3county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for McDowell County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the West Virginia figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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