What is the population of Charleston city?

Charleston city has 47,918 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #1 of 439 in West Virginia.

What is the median household income in Charleston city?

Median household income in Charleston city is $64,512 a year, 17.9% below the national figure of $78,538.

How much does it cost to rent or buy in Charleston city?

Median gross rent is $898 a month and the median home value is $187,300, so rent absorbs about 16.7% of median household income.

Is Charleston city affordable compared with the rest of the US?

Homes cost about 2.9× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Charleston city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 16.7% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.

Aerial view of a dense city center, illustrating the US cities ZIP code directory

West Virginia · Census place 14600

Charleston, WV population, income and ZIP codes

Quick answer

The population of the city of Charleston, West Virginia (Charleston, WV — Census place “Charleston city”) is 47,918 residents, ranking #1 of 439 places in West Virginia. Median household income is $64,512, the median home is worth $187,300 and median gross rent runs $898 a month. Looking for the Charleston West Virginia ZIP code list? 8 ZIP codes serve Charleston, WV: 25301, 25302, 25303, 25304, 25305, 25311, 25314, 25387.

Population: 47,918Charleston city residents
Median household income: $64,512Past 12 months, inflation adjusted
Median home value: $187,300Owner-occupied units
Median gross rent: $898Rent plus utilities, monthly
Median age: 42.6 yrsAll residents
Homeownership rate: 62.8%Owner-occupied households

Charleston ZIP codes (West Virginia)

Census ZCTAs whose delivery area overlaps Charleston.

The Charleston WV ZIP code list below covers 8 ZIP codes. Open any one for its population, income, housing and rent profile.

What the numbers mean in Charleston city

Housing cost measured against local earnings.

A household earning the Charleston city median would spend about 16.7% 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 2.9× the median household income; nationally that ratio sits near 4.5×. Poverty affects 16.5% of residents and 62.8% of households own their home.

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

Charleston city, WV in context

How this area compares with national benchmarks.

Charleston city is a small city in West Virginia, with 47,918 residents counted in the Census American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, which places it first of 439 ranked by population. The median age here is 42.6 years against 39.1 nationally, a slightly older profile than the country as a whole. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.

Households in Charleston city earn a median of $64,512 a year, 17.9% below the national figure of $78,538 and 22% above the $52,974 median for the 148 West 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 16.5% of residents here, above the 12.4% national rate.

The typical owner-occupied home in Charleston city is valued at $187,300, 38.3% below the national figure and 47% above the $127,200 peer median, while median gross rent runs $898 a month, 36.1% below the national figure, or roughly $10,776 across a full year. A household on the local median income would put about 16.7% 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 2.9×, against roughly 3.9× nationally, so buying is easier here than in the average US market. 62.8% of occupied homes are owner-occupied versus 65% nationally, so the market leans more heavily on renters. 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.

All values below were released by the Census for this exact geography, with no gap-filling on our side. 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 West Virginia.

More West Virginia coverage.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about this area.

What is the population of Charleston city?: Charleston city has 47,918 residents on Census ACS 2019-2023 ACS 5-year estimates, ranking #1 of 439 in West Virginia.
What is the median household income in Charleston city?: Median household income in Charleston city is $64,512 a year, 17.9% below the national figure of $78,538.
How much does it cost to rent or buy in Charleston city?: Median gross rent is $898 a month and the median home value is $187,300, so rent absorbs about 16.7% of median household income.
Is Charleston city affordable compared with the rest of the US?: Homes cost about 2.9× the local median income here versus roughly 3.9× nationally, so Charleston city is more affordable to buy in than the typical US market, and rent takes 16.7% of median income against the 30% cost-burden line.
How current is this Charleston city data?: All figures come from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019-2023 ACS 5-year five-year estimates. Places under 65,000 residents only appear in the five-year release, never the one-year file, so these values pool sixty months of responses and lag the current year by design.