Big Stone Gap, Virginia
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Down 3.2% since 2020.
5,102
people, the 62nd-largest of Virginia's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Virginia's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
87.6%
of 2,509 jobs located in Big Stone Gap are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 76% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$797
a month. Virginia's median is $1,579.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $323.
A $323 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Wise County.
- $475 Tract 9317
- $798 Tract 9316
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$840–$1,260
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $797 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
Most of the housing here is older than 2000.
- 82% of all homes were built before 2000
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.4–1.3% to the 1,924 homes here.
8–25
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 58% less than Virginia's.
$163,000
median home value in Big Stone Gap.
- $163,000 Big Stone Gap
- $383,700 Virginia
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year