The local economy of Virginia and its counties, metro areas and cities, from official US government data, plus daily local gas prices for the state, its counties and metro areas.
Unemployment rate
3.6%
+0.3 ptsvs a year ago
Counties: lowest Bath County 2.5%, highest Emporia city 7.6%.
August 2026, seasonally adjusted, preliminary
Average weekly pay
$1,665
+4.0%vs a year ago
4,118,739 jobs at 324,758 business locations.
Q1 2026, all jobs
New homes permitted
37,520
+25.9%this year vs last year
Most in Fairfax County 3,280, Richmond (Independent City) 3,159.
Homes in the last 12 months, to August 2026
People moving in
+1,290
+0.2 per 1,000residents
242,523 moved in and 241,233 moved out. Most newcomers came from Maryland.
Net people, 2022 to 2023, the newest year published
Virginia gas price
$4.19
+$1.22vs a year ago
Counties: lowest Waynesboro city $3.94, highest Highland County $4.35. Counties and metro areas
Regular, per gallon, Virginia, October 10, 2026
Newest data: -. Not seasonally adjusted: compare with the same month a year earlier. Click a row for the history of that area.
The state, its counties and metro areas, updated daily. A separate series from the weekly survey prices above.
Business locations, employees and payroll by industry, 2023. Click an industry for its US report.
Business locations
211K
+0.8%vs 2022
2023, places with paid employees
Employees
3.58M
+2.5%vs 2022
Largest sector: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (15.0%).
2023, mid-March
Annual payroll
$251.0B
Wages and salaries paid during the year.
2023, all industries
Average pay
$70,069
Highest sector: Information $139,665.
Per employee per year
Share of Virginia's employees, 2023
| Industry | Employees | Average pay |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 299,357 | $23,224 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 204,399 | $118,876 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 112,289 | $80,932 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services | 109,940 | $112,926 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 97,043 | $115,083 |
| Grocery Stores | 86,092 | $28,462 |
| Employment Services | 85,857 | $62,924 |
| Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services | 85,320 | $107,518 |
| Offices of Physicians | 74,587 | $109,700 |
| Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 72,585 | $36,965 |
| General Merchandise Stores, including Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters | 67,365 | $29,470 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 64,344 | $73,113 |
Most values are changed slightly to protect the privacy of single businesses; a few are withheld and shown as a range. Counties and metro areas have the same numbers in the area card above (Industries).
Offered pay in certified work-visa filings, fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025). Click a company for its jobs and salaries.
In fiscal year 2025, employers offered a median of $116,700 a year in 14,124 certified H-1B filings for jobs in Virginia, up 3.0% from 2024 (US: $120,000). The largest job group was Software Developers. Fiscal year 2026 so far covers filings decided through Jun 30, 2026.
Median offered pay
$116,700
+3.0%vs 2024
Middle half: $95,500 to $144,925.
H-1B, fiscal year 2025
H-1B filings
14,124
+3.1%vs 2024
21,250 positions asked for.
Certified, full-time, fiscal year 2025
Top job group
$126,090
Software Developers, 5,096 filings.
Median offered pay of the largest job group
Green card jobs
$100,069
-9.2%vs 2024
3,454 PERM filings.
PERM median, fiscal year 2025
Median and middle half of the offers in Virginia, next to the US median. Hover a year for the numbers.
| Job group | Filings | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Software Developers | 5,096 | $126,090 |
| Data Scientists | 1,248 | $110,739 |
| Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians | 979 | $118,310 |
| Computer Programmers | 676 | $94,370 |
| Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers | 496 | $105,000 |
| Computer Systems Analysts | 358 | $104,050 |
| Database Administrators | 324 | $97,760 |
| Accountants and Auditors | 304 | $93,500 |
| Computer and Information Systems Managers | 292 | $190,000 |
| Civil Engineers | 282 | $99,400 |
| Employer | Filings | Cities |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Services LLC AMZN | 607 | 12 |
| Capital One Services, LLC COF | 443 | 3 |
| Amazon Web Services Inc AMZN | 411 | 13 |
| Cognizant Technology Solutions US Corp. CTSH | 362 | 32 |
| Ernst & Young U.S. LLP | 307 | 31 |
| Capital One, National Association COF | 272 | 2 |
| Amazon Data Services, Inc. AMZN | 242 | 8 |
| Hexaware Technologies, Inc. | 219 | 5 |
| Amazon Development Center U.S., Inc. AMZN | 199 | 2 |
| University of Virginia | 195 | 8 |
| City | Filings | Median pay | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|
| McLean | 1,997 | $119,036 | $101,421 to $148,221 |
| Arlington | 1,552 | $133,100 | $110,786 to $160,000 |
| Richmond | 1,441 | $107,890 | $90,000 to $131,206 |
| Herndon | 1,435 | $125,237 | $105,000 to $148,221 |
| Reston | 973 | $123,094 | $105,000 to $150,051 |
| Ashburn | 690 | $122,699 | $97,500 to $151,970 |
| Glen Allen | 401 | $108,000 | $90,000 to $130,000 |
| Vienna | 386 | $126,162 | $104,000 to $157,100 |
| Sterling | 359 | $111,946 | $93,246 to $135,100 |
| Fairfax | 350 | $108,544 | $92,866 to $128,385 |
Yearly pay that employers offered in certified work-visa filings (H-1B, E-3 and PERM green card), from official public data. Pay is the lower end of the offered pay range, for full-time positions only. These are offered pay figures for positions in work-visa filings, not the pay of all employees. A filing is an offer for a position, not a hire, and one person can appear in several filings. Fiscal years run from October to September. Groups with fewer than 3 filings show counts only. Employers are ranked by filings in the cities of Virginia added up.
Declared disasters and flood insurance claims: what happened, from official public data.
Virginia has had 77 declared disasters and emergencies since 1957, 47 of them since 2000, most often Severe Storm. Flood insurance has paid $771.8 million on 50,609 claims since 1978; the biggest year was 2003 ($236.2 million).
Declared disasters
47
32 major disasters. Most often Severe Storm (20 since 1957).
Since 2000, all types; 77 since 1957
Flood claims paid
$135.3M
5,878 claims. Biggest year 2003 ($236.2M).
2016 to 2025, flood insurance
Policies in force
91,362
Average premium $709 a year.
2025, flood insurance policies
Most-declared county
20
Tazewell County, latest Jan 23, 2026.
Declarations since 2000
Declarations for Virginia, 1957 to today
Claims paid in Virginia by the year of the flood, US dollars
Declarations since 1957
Declarations naming the county since 2000; statewide ones not counted
All years since 1978; policies are a yearly average. Top 15 of 131.
| # | County | Claims | Paid | Policies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia Beach City | 6,260 | $103.8M | 23,026 |
| 2 | Hampton City | 5,774 | $73.7M | 10,349 |
| 3 | Poquoson City | 4,290 | $72.9M | 3,157 |
| 4 | Norfolk City | 6,019 | $69.1M | 11,697 |
| 5 | York County | 1,569 | $34.0M | 3,143 |
| 6 | Gloucester County | 1,378 | $30.9M | 1,508 |
| 7 | Chesapeake City | 2,634 | $27.3M | 8,428 |
| 8 | Newport News City | 1,065 | $23.9M | 2,102 |
| 9 | Mathews County | 1,162 | $20.5M | 1,388 |
| 10 | Roanoke City | 1,184 | $20.2M | 541 |
| 11 | Portsmouth City | 1,748 | $20.0M | 3,812 |
| 12 | Salem City | 812 | $18.9M | 397 |
| 13 | Fairfax County | 1,488 | $16.5M | 6,471 |
| 14 | Accomack County | 1,114 | $12.6M | 3,461 |
| 15 | Richmond City | 547 | $11.8M | 595 |
A declaration opens federal help after a disaster; it can name counties or the whole state. Flood insurance numbers count insured losses only (most homes have no flood insurance) and are not adjusted for inflation; the current year is data so far. For the flood-zone risk of a place, open the area on the real estate map.
Environmental compliance records, workplace safety inspections and greenhouse gas reports of facilities in Virginia, from official public data.
Official public data lists 14,107 facilities in Virginia with records since 2010, 14,032 of them with environmental compliance records. In 2022 to 2026, the largest penalties were at Dynax America Corp USA in Roanoke ($233,842). 193 large facilities reported 35.0 million metric tons of greenhouse gases in 2023, down 4.8% from 2022.
Facilities with records
14,107
14,032 with environmental records.
Since 2010
Largest penalties
$234K
Dynax America Corp USA, Roanoke.
One facility, 2022 to 2026
Greenhouse gases
35.0M t
-4.8%vs 2022
193 reporting facilities.
Metric tons CO2e, 2023
Largest emitter
3.61M t
Greensville County Power Station, Emporia.
Metric tons CO2e, 2023
| Facility | Penalties | Violations |
|---|---|---|
| Dynax America Corp USA Roanoke | $233,842 | 1 |
| 1650 Cumberland Solar Site Farmville | $211,808 | 0 |
| 1671 Cumberland Solar Site Farmville | $186,822 | 0 |
| Six 0 Five Village M H P Stp Mineral | $186,675 | 26 |
| Novo Nordisk Pharmaceutical Industries LP Petersburg | $160,000 | 6 |
| North Ridge Solar Powhatan | $129,191 | 0 |
| Iron Mountain Information Management LLC Manassas | $112,885 | 3 |
| Alton Post Office Solar Alton | $106,288 | 0 |
| Perdue Agribusiness, INC Chesapeake | $106,281 | 2 |
| Granules Pharmaceuticals, INC. Chantilly | $95,872 | 15 |
| Facility | Metric tons CO2e |
|---|---|
| Greensville County Power Station Emporia | 3,605,193 |
| Warren County Power Station Front Royal | 3,136,841 |
| Doswell Energy Center Ashland | 2,581,376 |
| Brunswick County Power Station Freeman | 2,405,590 |
| Potomac Energy Center Leesburg | 1,655,660 |
| Tenaska Virginia Partners, L.P. Scottsville | 1,529,451 |
| Chesterfield Power Station Chester | 1,292,661 |
| Advansix Incorporated - Hopewell Hopewell | 1,227,774 |
| Bear Garden Generating Station New Canton | 1,146,397 |
| Buchanan Mine #1 Raven | 1,092,629 |
Large facilities in Virginia, metric tons of CO2 equivalent. Hover a year for the number.
Their facilities in Virginia, 2022 to 2026. Click a company for its Risk & Compliance tab.
| Company | Facilities | Penalties | CO2e (t) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN | 58 | $72K | - |
| Walmart Inc. WMT | 28 | $39K | - |
| Tyson Foods, Inc. TSN | 8 | $18K | 37K |
| Waste Management, Inc. WM | 13 | $10K | 552K |
| Dominion Energy, Inc. D | 36 | $10K | 14.4M |
| Republic Services, Inc. RSG | 10 | $9,929 | 220K |
| The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company GT | 2 | $9,636 | 50K |
| Celanese Corporation CE | 1 | $9,261 | 543K |
Official public data on environmental compliance records, workplace safety inspections and greenhouse gas reports, summarized by facility and year since 2010. A record does not mean a site is unsafe today; penalties and violations vary a lot by industry and size. Penalties are the amounts assessed (after settlements), not amounts paid. Recent years can still change.
Cost, students and graduate earnings of the colleges in the state, from official public data.
The newest unemployment rate, pay, new home permits, moves and gas price for Virginia, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Virginia is seasonally adjusted; for its counties, metro areas and cities it is not, so compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Pay covers all jobs that pay into unemployment insurance. Building permits count homes approved to be built, not homes sold. Moves count households by where they filed their tax returns in two years in a row. Daily gas prices are average pump prices for Virginia, its counties and metro areas on the day shown. The weekly gas prices in the explorer come from a separate weekly survey that publishes a price for only some states, so a state without one shows the price of its region there; the two series are never combined.
The unemployment rate in Virginia was 3.6% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 3.3% a year earlier. 4,304,756 people were employed out of a labor force of 4,465,164. Among its counties, Bath County had the lowest rate (2.5%) and Emporia city the highest (7.6%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Virginia was $1,665 in Q1 2026, up 4.0% from a year earlier, across 4,118,739 jobs at 324,758 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 4,366 new homes in Virginia in August 2026 (1,897 single-family and 2,404 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 28,600, up 25.9% from the same months last year, and 37,520 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Fairfax County (3,280), Richmond (Independent City) (3,159), Chesterfield County (3,144) over the last 12 months.
Yes. From 2022 to 2023, 242,523 people moved to Virginia and 241,233 moved away, a net gain of 1,290 (+0.2 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from Maryland, North Carolina, Florida, and most people who left went to North Carolina, Florida, Maryland.
Regular gasoline in Virginia averaged $4.19 per gallon on October 10, 2026, up $1.22 from a year earlier. Diesel averaged $6.23. Among its counties, Waynesboro city had the lowest regular price ($3.94) and Highland County the highest ($4.35).
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (536,441 employees), Health Care and Social Assistance (488,231 employees), Retail Trade (423,568 employees) were the largest sectors in Virginia in 2023. In all, 210,842 business locations employed 3,581,650 people at an average pay of $70,069 a year.
$116,700 a year was the median pay offered in 14,124 certified H-1B filings for jobs in Virginia in fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025), up 3.0% from 2024. The middle half of the offers ranged from $95,500 to $144,925. The US median was $120,000. These are offered pay figures in work-visa filings, not the pay of all workers.
Amazon.com Services LLC (607), Capital One Services, LLC (443), Amazon Web Services Inc (411), Cognizant Technology Solutions US Corp. (362), Ernst & Young U.S. LLP (307) had the most certified H-1B filings for jobs in Virginia in fiscal year 2025 (October 2024 to September 2025).
Software Developers (5,096 filings, median $126,090), Data Scientists (1,248 filings, median $110,739), Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians (979 filings, median $118,310) were the largest job groups in certified H-1B filings in Virginia in fiscal year 2025.
$133,100 was the median offered pay in Arlington, the highest among the Virginia cities with the most H-1B filings in fiscal year 2025 (1,552 filings).
$100,069 a year was the median pay offered in 3,454 certified PERM green card filings for jobs in Virginia in fiscal year 2025.
77 disasters and emergencies have been declared for Virginia since 1957, 47 of them since 2000 (32 major disasters). The most common type is Severe Storm (20 declarations).
Tazewell County, with 20 declarations since 2000, followed by Buchanan County (19) and Craig County (18). Statewide declarations are not counted for single counties.
$771.8 million on 50,609 flood insurance claims since 1978. The biggest year was 2003, with $236.2 million paid on 11,938 claims. Virginia Beach City received the most ($103.8 million).
$709 a year in 2025, across 91,362 flood insurance policies in Virginia. Most homes have no flood insurance; the premium depends on the home's flood risk and coverage.