county

Galax city, VA

Demographic and economic profile of Galax city, VA, sourced from the US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) via Data USA.

AI Overview

Galax is a small independent city in southwestern Virginia with a population of 6,698, posting modest 0.9% growth over five years. The workforce numbers roughly 3,800 labor-force participants at a 57.0% participation rate, with 18.3% holding a bachelor's degree or higher and median worker earnings of $36,383. Housing costs are low—median home value of $126,800 and median gross rent of $692 per month—though a 23.4% poverty rate and 5.5% unemployment rate signal persistent economic stress in the local market.

Claude Sonnet 4.6 · generated Jul 6, 2026 · derived from cached Census, BEA & ACS data on this page

Population

6,698

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Household Income

$38,675

Data USA · as of 2024

Median Age

42.9 yrs

Data USA · as of 2024

Population Growth (5-year)

+0.9% since 2018

Galax city added population at this rate over the prior 5-year ACS5 window.

Demographics

Race & Ethnicity

  • White Alone5,409 (80.4%)
  • Two Races Including Some Other Race508 (7.6%)
  • Black or African American Alone331 (4.9%)
  • Some Other Race Alone259 (3.9%)
  • Two Races Excluding Some Other Race, & Three or More Races187 (2.8%)
  • Asian Alone19 (0.3%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Languages Spoken at Home

  1. 1.Spanish671
  2. 2.Tagalog (incl. Filipino)10

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population Under 18

24.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Working-Age (18–64)

55.8%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Population 65 and Over

19.9%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Foreign-Born Population

5.5%

Data USA · as of 2024

Veterans

473

Data USA · as of 2024

Economy

GDP per Capita

—

Not yet cached

Cost of Living Index

—

Not yet cached

Per Capita Income

$31,429

Census ACS · as of 2023

Unemployment Rate

5.5%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Poverty Rate

23.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Top Industries

  1. 1.Educational Services, & Health Care & Social Assistance538
  2. 2.Retail Trade (Group)521
  3. 3.Manufacturing (Group)377
  4. 4.Professional, Scientific, & Management, & Administrative & Waste Management Services358
  5. 5.Public Administration (Group)349

Data USA · as of 2024

Top Occupations

  1. 1.Management, Business, Science, & Arts Occupations938
  2. 2.Sales & Office Occupations752
  3. 3.Service Occupations547
  4. 4.Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations389
  5. 5.Natural Resources, Construction, & Maintenance Occupations169

Data USA · as of 2024

Specialized Industries (Location Quotient)

  1. 1.Public Administration (LQ 2.55×)342
  2. 2.Retail Trade (LQ 1.93×)596
  3. 3.Manufacturing (LQ 1.43×)403
  4. 4.Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, & Accommodation (LQ 0.95×)237
  5. 5.Educational Services & Health Care (LQ 0.84×)560

Census ACS · as of 2023

Housing

Median Home Value

$126,800

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Gross Rent

$692/mo

Census ACS · as of 2023

Homeownership Rate

56.3%

Data USA · as of 2024

Home Value Distribution

  • $100,000 to $124,999208 (13.4%)
  • $125,000 to $149,999172 (11.1%)
  • $90,000 to $99,999162 (10.4%)
  • $300,000 to $399,999160 (10.3%)
  • $150,000 to $174,999151 (9.7%)
  • $200,000 to $249,999142 (9.1%)

Data USA · as of 2024

Education

Bachelor's Degree or Higher

18.3%

Census ACS · as of 2023

High School Diploma or Higher

83.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Workforce

Labor Force Participation

57.0%

Census ACS · as of 2023

Median Worker Earnings

$36,383

Census ACS · as of 2023

Mean Commute Time

22.6 min

Data USA · as of 2024

Households Without a Vehicle

10.4%

Census ACS · as of 2023

How People Get to Work

  • Drove Alone2,331 (83.4%)
  • Carpooled297 (10.6%)
  • Worked At Home162 (5.8%)
  • Walked5 (0.2%)
  • Public Transit0 (0.0%)
  • Taxi0 (0.0%)

Data USA · as of 2024

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Data: US Census Bureau American Community Survey, served via Data USA and the Census Bureau API. See each metric tile for the specific dataset.