Covington is #1 in Virginia for affordability
Covington is ranked on 36 lists against the 255 Virginia towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 3 and the top quarter on 7.
Covington is on Virginia’s podium 3 times
Each list ranks every VA town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Covington marked.
Shorter growing season than 98% of Virginia
Not better or worse, just Covington’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Covington lands in the top half on 9 of 22 lists
Each dot is Covington’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in VA, the right end is last. Areas where Covington does best come first.
4 spots from the top 10 for cheap rent
Lists where Covington sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Every VA list, and where Covington lands
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Covington · 0.9 yrs
#1
Cheapest rent#1 Clifton Forge · $592/mo
#14
Lowest property tax#1 Covington · $681/yr
#1
Rent easiest to afford#1 Franconia · 28.6%
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 Quantico Base · 11.5 min
#15 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Groveton · 53.8%
#36
U
Most trails#1 University of Virginia · 10.3 mi / sq mi
#79
O
Most walkable#1 One Loudoun · 214 / sq mi
#142 Safety
Safest#1 Broadway · 5.7
#29 
Health
Healthiest#1 Tysons · 100 / 100
#246
N
Lowest obesity#1 Navy · 20%
#223
Fewest smokers#1 Great Falls · 5%
#251
Most active#1 Wyndham · 14%
#237
Fewest uninsured#1 Great Falls · 4%
#189
Lowest depression#1 Loudoun Valley Estates · 15%
#229
Closest to a top hospital#1 Charlottesville · 0.0 mi
#51 
Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Chincoteague · 54%
#118
Most new homes#1 Falls Church · 12.8 per 1,000
#52
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Crewe · +71.5%
#159
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Manassas Park · 61.4 per home
People
N Most educated#1 Navy · 87.8% #252 U Youngest#1 University of Virginia · 19.6 #117 N Oldest#1 North Shore · 62.6 #140 N Most residents 65+#1 North Shore · 44.9% #58 F Most kids#1 Fort Belvoir · 47.5% #129
The number on the right is Covington’s spot. All of Virginia’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every VA list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.