State Ledger
State profile

West Virginia FIPS 54

Population
1,801,049
Median household income
$50,884
Nonfarm employment
715,900
Business establishments
35,839

Every figure above traces to a primary source · view data sources & methodology

State Highlights

Largest employer sector
Health care and social assistance
139,754 employees
Business concentration
25.4%
of private employment in Health care and social assistance
Home prices, 1 year
+8.0%
FHFA
Federal outlays per capita
$9,906.26
USASpending.gov

Economy & Labor

Total nonfarm employment

BLS Current Employment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted · persons · 20 months available · latest observation: August 2026
Employment ratio
39.4%
employed ÷ population
Unemployed population (ACS)
50,277
Vs. July
▼ 1,600
Business density
19.7 per 1,000
establishments per capita

Leading Industries

Leading industries by employment

Ranked by private-sector employment, same measure as the Business & Industry tab · see the full breakdown there
1 Health care and social assistance 139,754 employees
2 Retail trade 77,727 employees
3 Accommodation and food services 65,992 employees
4 Manufacturing 48,350 employees
5 Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services 32,878 employees

Leading Public Companies

Top 3 by latest reported revenue

SEC EDGAR / XBRL Company Facts · see the full listing on the Public Companies tab
AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC · APEI
$648.86M
Services-Educational Services
Energy Services of America CORP · ESOA
$411.00M
Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction
INFINITY NATURAL RESOURCES, INC. · INR
$356.43M
Crude Petroleum & Natural Gas

Population & People

Homeownership rate
73.9%
525.9K of 711.4K occupied homes are owner-occupied

Population by age

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimate (table B01001) · reconciles to total population
0–17
366.5K · 20.3%
18–24
156.6K · 8.7%
25–34
210.9K · 11.7%
35–44
218.0K · 12.1%
45–54
232.7K · 12.9%
55–64
257.4K · 14.3%
65–74
217.7K · 12.1%
75+
141.1K · 7.8%

Housing & Real Estate

Median home value
$128,800
Median gross rent
$770 / month
Vacancy rate
17.2%
Total housing units
859.4K
Owner-occupied homes
525.9K
Renter-occupied homes
185.4K
Home prices, 1 year
+8.0%
Home prices, 5 years
+43.5%
Latest FHFA period
2026 Q2

ACS: 2021 ACS 5-year · FHFA: 2026 Q2

ACS housing estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau — median home value reflects owner-reported value, not a current sale price. House-price changes are from the FHFA All-Transactions House Price Index, a measure of price appreciation over time, not a home-value estimate.

Federal Spending

Total federal outlays
$17.99B
Outlays per capita
$9,906.26
Total prime award value
$22.14B

Source: USASpending.gov · specific reporting period not published in this dataset