What is the population of Amherst town?

Amherst town has 2,124 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #277 of 688 in Virginia.

What is the median household income in Amherst town?

Median household income in Amherst town is $71,313 a year, 9.2% below the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Amherst town?

Median gross rent is $686 a month and the median home value is $213,300, so rent absorbs about 11.5% of median household income.

Is Amherst town affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 3× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Amherst town is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 11.5% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

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Virginia · Census place 01672

Amherst, VA population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Amherst, Virginia (Amherst, VA — Census place “Amherst town”) is 2,124 residents, ranking #277 of 688 places in Virginia. Median household income is $71,313, the median home is worth $213,300 and median gross rent runs $686 a month. Looking for the Amherst Virginia ZIP code list? 1 ZIP codes serve Amherst, VA: 24521.

Population: 2,124Amherst town residents
Median household income: $71,313Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $213,300Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $686Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 44.6 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 69.9%Owner-occupied households

Amherst ZIP codes (Virginia)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Amherst.

The Amherst VA ZIP code list below covers 1 ZIP code. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

24521

What the numbers mean in Amherst town

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Amherst town median would spend about 11.5% of gross income on the median rent. The 30% mark is the federal threshold for cost burden, so anything above it signals a stretched rental market. The median home costs 3.0× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 6.5% of residents and 69.9% of households own their home.

Source: US Census Bureau, ACS 2019-2023 5-year estimates · rates as published for 2019-2023 ACS 5-year

Amherst town, VA in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Amherst town is a small town in Virginia, with 2,124 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it #277 of 688 ranked by population — larger than 59% of them. The median age here is 44.6 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly older profile than the country as a whole. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.

Households in Amherst town earn a median of $71,313 a year, 9.2% below the national figure of $78,538 and 14% below the $82,986 median for the 383 Virginia cities we cover. The median is the midpoint household, not an average, so a handful of very high earners cannot drag it upward the way they distort a mean. Poverty reaches 6.5% of residents here, below the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Amherst town is valued at $213,300, 29.7% below the national figure and 27% below the $291,300 peer median, while median gross rent runs $686 a month, 51.2% below the national figure, or roughly $8,232 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 11.5% of gross pay toward that rent against the federal 30% cost-burden threshold, so renting here is cheap relative to what people here earn. The home-price-to-income ratio works out to 3×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 69.9% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans toward owners. Rent is reported gross — contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities — which is why it runs above the advertised price on a listing for the same unit.

Every value on this page is published directly by the Census for this area — nothing is modelled or interpolated. Small-area estimates still carry wider margins of error than state or national figures, so check the linked ACS tables before relying on them for lending, appraisal or legal work.

Compare with nearby places

Places of similar size in Virginia.

More Virginia coverage.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Amherst town?: Amherst town has 2,124 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #277 of 688 in Virginia.
What is the median household income in Amherst town?: Median household income in Amherst town is $71,313 a year, 9.2% below the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Amherst town?: Median gross rent is $686 a month and the median home value is $213,300, so rent absorbs about 11.5% of median household income.
Is Amherst town affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 3× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Amherst town is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 11.5% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Amherst town data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. At this population the ACS sample is small, so the margin of error around every dollar figure below is wide — treat the numbers as a band, not a point, and expect them to move between annual releases without the place itself changing.