Largest Cities in Virginia: Ranked by Population

The largest city in Virginia in our data is Virginia Beach, VA, with an estimated 1,478,868 people, followed by Richmond, VA (1,075,798) and Chesapeake, VA (244,835). This list ranks the top 50 places among the 194 Virginia communities with at least 5,000 residents.

What are the top 50 in Virginia?

How big are the largest cities in Virginia?

Of the 194 places with pages, 12 have more than 100,000 residents, 32 have between 25,000 and 100,000, and 150 have fewer than 25,000. The median place has about 14,028 people. The ten largest places account for about 53% of the combined population of all pages, which shows how concentrated the state's population is across communities. Fairfax County contributes 15 of the top 50.

Which counties do the top 50 belong to?

The 50 places on this list are spread across 30 counties of Virginia. Fairfax County has 15 (Centreville, Reston, McLean, Annandale, Burke, Oakton, Fair Oaks, Springfield, West Falls ); Loudoun County has 4 (Leesburg, Ashburn, South Riding, Sterling); Prince William County has 3 (Dale City, Lake Ridge, Linton Hall). Counties with several entries are usually centers of a metropolitan area, where one large city is surrounded by many suburbs that each pass the 5,000-resident threshold.

How does Virginia compare with the rest of the country?

The median Virginia place with a page has about 14,028 residents, compared with about 13,459 nationwide, so the state's typical community is about the same size as the national typical place. Virginia Beach, VA ranks 39th among all US places by estimated population in our data. The state has 586 communities in total, of which 194 reach 5,000 residents. See the national ranking of the largest cities for comparison.

Quick answers about Virginia cities

• Which is the largest city in Virginia? Virginia Beach (1,478,868 people).
• How many Virginia cities have more than 100,000 people? 12 in our data.
• How many have 25,000 to 100,000? 32.
• What is the typical size? About 14,028 residents for a place with a page.

How is this ranking made?

The data comes from the SimpleMaps US Cities Database, which gives each place an estimated population and a density in people per square kilometer. We convert density to people per square mile and rank the places with at least 5,000 residents. Boundaries matter: a city that includes large parks or farmland scores lower on density than a compact city of the same size, and population estimates can include areas that share a city's ZIP codes. Read why population figures differ and how density is calculated before you quote a number.

Where to go next

Rankings use dataset estimates, not official counts.