City safety & data profile
NorfolkVA
Norfolk, VA is a 238K-resident city in Norfolk city with a median household income of $66,109.
Norfolk city, Virginia. Federal health, economic, and safety indicators for Norfolk, drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, CDC PLACES, and CMS Hospital Compare. Norfolk has a population larger than 98% of the 4,640 U.S. cities Areazine tracks, a median home value of $289,900, and 3 hospitals serving the surrounding area.
- 238K
- Population (place)
- Top 2%
- By size
- $66,109
- Median income (place)
- $289,900
- Median home (place)
- 16.5%
- Poverty rate (place)
The read on Norfolk
Norfolk posts a median household income higher than 31% of U.S. cities Areazine tracks, where 5 recent safety alerts are on record and 3 hospitals serve the Norfolk area.
- Bottom 32%
- by median income, US cities
- 5
- safety alerts on record
- 3
- hospitals in & near Norfolk
Composite score · Norfolk, VA
44/100
4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2024
A transparent index Areazine derives from Census ACS medians (income, poverty, bachelor's share) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when published, not an official Census Bureau or FBI rating. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability rating, not a recommendation to move to or avoid any place. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents. State-level rate (per-city UCR reporting is incomplete/voluntary): every city in the state shares this value; lower is stronger on this axis.
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS 5-Year Estimates.
Median household income vs cities tracked on Areazine; ACS 5-Year Estimates.
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis. ACS 5-Year Estimates.
See the full national tables: Healthiest Cities in America (health outcomes only) · Community Wellbeing Cities (this page's blended composite).
Where Norfolk income ranks nationally
Median household income vs. every place Areazine profiles (place-level ACS)
$66,109 Bottom 31% higher than 31% of 3,889 places Areazine profiles
Each bar is a $20,000-wide band; taller bars hold more places Areazine profiles. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (place-level) · 2024 ACS 5-year
Largest cities in VA
102 VA places (10,000+ residents, ACS income on record), sorted by population. Hover a bar for its income rank in this pool.
- Virginia Beach
Virginia Beach, VA
454,808 residents
- Norfolk
Norfolk, VA
238,005 residents
- Chesapeake
Chesapeake, VA
235,429 residents
- Richmond
Richmond, VA
226,610 residents
- Arlington
Arlington, VA
207,627 residents
- Newport News
Newport News, VA
186,247 residents
- Alexandria 159,467
Alexandria, VA
159,467 residents
- Hampton 137,148
Hampton, VA
137,148 residents
- Roanoke 100,011
Roanoke, VA
100,011 residents
- Portsmouth 96,201
Portsmouth, VA
96,201 residents
What this shows Virginia Beach is the largest VA city on this list; Great Falls leads median income.
Top earners by city in VA
Median household income among the same 102-city pool. Tooltip shows the population rank.
- Great Falls
Great Falls, VA
$250,001 median
- McLean
McLean, VA
$250,001 median
- Wolf Trap
Wolf Trap, VA
$250,001 median
- Bull Run
Bull Run, VA
$241,933 median
- Broadlands
Broadlands, VA
$241,042 median
- Lowes Island
Lowes Island, VA
$220,833 median
- Vienna
Vienna, VA
$216,953 median
- Fort Hunt
Fort Hunt, VA
$216,038 median
- Dranesville
Dranesville, VA
$214,688 median
- Fairfax Station
Fairfax Station, VA
$212,224 median
What this shows Income honors go to Great Falls here -- by headcount, that title belongs to Virginia Beach.
The quick read
Reading Norfolk, VA beyond the headline numbers
Norfolk sits inside Norfolk city, Virginia, at roughly 36.85°N, -76.29°W. Population 238,005, $66,109 median household income. Median home value $289,900, median rent $1,321. Poverty rate 16.5%, read against that income figure since two cities on the same median can differ underneath it.
3 hospitals in/around Norfolk, 3.5/5 avg rating, 1 with an ER. Climate: 60.1°F annual average, 53.6" precipitation.
2.6% of Norfolk workers commute by public transit, a larger share than at least three quarters of reporting cities.
Norfolk's median age is 32.7 years, in the youngest quarter of reporting cities.
Among the CDC measures on this page, obesity departs furthest from its peer median: 39.9% in Norfolk, the highest-prevalence quarter of the 3,759 cities reporting that measure.
Poverty in Norfolk, VA stands at 16.5%, above the midpoint of reporting cities. A median income can look comfortable while a share this size sits well beneath it, which is why the two figures belong together.
Remote work covers 10.2% of Norfolk workers, under the midpoint for reporting cities.
A median home in Norfolk runs about 4.4 times median household income, above the midpoint. Multiples in this range usually mean buyers are arriving from outside the local wage base.
Median rent in Norfolk, VA runs $1,321/month, below the midpoint for reporting cities.
Unemployment in Norfolk sits at 4.7%, below the midpoint of reporting cities.
33.5% of Norfolk adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, above the midpoint of reporting cities.
Sources: U.S. Census ACS, CDC PLACES, CMS Hospital Compare, plus live alerts for Norfolk from FEMA, NOAA, FDA, and CPSC. Economic comparison bars use the unweighted average across tracked Census places with a reported value, not a household-weighted national median.
A Decade of Change 2013–2024
County-level trend (Norfolk city): Norfolk's own historical series isn't separately published by the Census Bureau, so these year-over-year figures track the surrounding county, not the city alone.
Economic Snapshot
What stands out most about Norfolk's economic profile: poverty rate at 16.5%, 33% above the average across tracked places. Median household income runs 26% below average too, at $66,109.
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Median Rent | |
| Poverty Rate | 16.5% +33% vs avg |
| Unemployment | 4.7% |
| Bachelor's Degree+ | 33.5% |
| Work From Home | 10.2% |
| Public Transit | 2.6% |
Population Snapshot
Health Profile 15 measures
Health Indicators
Preventive Care
Other Measures
Hospitals 3 total
CMS Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating (1-5): a composite score across dozens of reported measures, not a single outcome guarantee for any patient. It isn't adjusted for patient case mix and isn't directly comparable across hospital types, a critical-access facility and a large teaching hospital aren't rated on the same measure set.
Climate
NOAA 1991-2020 NormalsCost of Living
BEA 20242.1% below national average
Metro area: Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC (MSA)
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities via FRED. RPP of 100 = national average.
NFIP Flood Claim History
FEMA NFIP, county-levelSince 2016, NFIP has paid out $6.2M across 506 flood insurance claims filed in Norfolk city.
Hurricane Matthew alone generated 301 of those claims, the county's largest named flood event in this record.
Source: FEMA National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims, via OpenFEMA. County-level data: individual claims are not attributed to a specific city or address by FEMA.
What alerts and safety updates affect Norfolk? 5
Flood Alert Issued for Tidal River Yare from Thorpe St Andrew to Breydon Water
Flood Alert Issued for Tidal Rivers Bure, Ant, and Thurne in Norfolk
Flood Alert Issued for Hunstanton Coast in Norfolk Due to High Tides and Strong Winds
Flood Alert Issued for Hunstanton Coast in Norfolk for February 17
Flood Alert Issued for River Bure and Spixworth Beck in Norfolk
City alert dispatch desk
Sheet VA-NORFOLK-VA · Norfolk
Norfolk: 37 tagged alerts; lead category Environment Agency flood warning.
- VOL-HEAVY 37 on record
- MIX-LED 54% uk-floods
- DESK-IDLE Awaiting feed
- PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Somerset
- RANK-UPPER #18 tagged volume
Tagged alert mix: Norfolk
Published notices carrying this city slug or location tag
- Flood Warnings
Flood Warnings
20
- Weather Alerts
Weather Alerts
12
- Weather Warnings 5
Weather Warnings
5
What this shows 37 tagged notices on record for Norfolk.
Nearest tagged-volume peer: Somerset, NJ (36 tagged · Δ1)
Counts reflect published articles tagged to Norfolk; untagged NOAA county warnings may still appear in the site feed. Browse Virginia state hubs · Methodology
Similar alert activity elsewhere 4
Nearest published-notice counts on Areazine (37 tagged here), a feed-density peer set, not an ACS demographic match.
Read with this city profile
What People Ask 9
What is the population of Norfolk, VA? ▼
What is the median household income in Norfolk? ▼
What is the median home value in Norfolk? ▼
What are the top health concerns in Norfolk? ▼
How many hospitals are in Norfolk? ▼
What is the median age in Norfolk? ▼
What is the climate like in Norfolk? ▼
What is the cost of living in Norfolk? ▼
What is the flood claim history for Norfolk? ▼
Comparable cities by poverty or income, nationwide 8
Two ACS-derived peer sets for Norfolk, both outside Virginia so the neighborhoods are not the geographic nearby list below.
Similar poverty rate
Nearest place-level ACS poverty rates outside VA (16.5% here).
Similar median income
Nearest place-level ACS median household incomes outside VA ($66,109 here).
Compare Norfolk with another city
Pick a second U.S. city to open a side-by-side profile on population, income, health, and hospitals, the same federal datasets as this page.
Cities Close By 8
Turning this into a research checklist
Use this as a starting research checklist, not a verdict on whether to live here.
- Check live recalls, weather and hazard alerts scoped to the Norfolk area before relying on national headlines. Check your area
- Read the poverty rate alongside the income figure, two places with the same median can have very different realities.
- Compare Norfolk against Virginia peers on any ranking lens. Explore Virginia
U.S. Census ACS supplies the place-level population and economics figures (income, home value, poverty, education); CDC PLACES supplies health; hospital counts reflect nearby facilities. County-level trends carry their own label.
Data Sources
All data on this page comes from official U.S. government sources. Population and economic data from the Census Bureau American Community Survey (2024 5-year estimates, place geography). Health data from the CDC PLACES program (2023). Hospital ratings from CMS Hospital Compare (2024). Climate data from NOAA. Education data from NCES. Cost of living from Bureau of Economic Analysis. Crime statistics, where referenced on Areazine, originate from the FBI Crime Data Explorer. Housing market figures referenced on Areazine come from HUD Fair Market Rents. Census economics and population are at place geography; some health and hospital indicators are reported at the county level (Norfolk city) where that is the smallest published unit.
Every figure on Areazine is published directly from official U.S. government sources, no number is typed in by an editor. City demographic and health figures are compiled directly from U.S. Census (place-level ACS), CDC, and CMS releases, updated quarterly within 30 days of upstream release. County-level trends are labeled when shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-09-16.