Raleigh County, West Virginia

Raleigh County population, land area and income

Raleigh County had 72,379 residents in the Census Vintage 2024 estimate, on 605.0 square miles of land. It ranks 6th of 55 in West Virginia by population and 10th by land area. That works out to 119.6 people per square mile, 1.2 times the US average of 96.3, and above the national county median.

The median county-equivalent in West Virginia has 21,285 residents, so Raleigh County is 3.4 times that size.

Its SAIPE 2023 median household income of $53,456 is in the bottom quarter among 3,143 counties with an estimate.

How Raleigh County's population changed since 2020

Raleigh County lost 2,028 residents between the July 2020 and July 2024 estimates, a drop of 2.7%. That ranks 25th of 55 in West Virginia for growth. The median West Virginia county changed by -2.9%, and the state as a whole by -1.2%.

Since the April 2020 estimates base, Raleigh County recorded 2,812 births and 5,199 deaths, a natural change of -2,387. Net international migration added +351 and net domestic migration, people moving to or from other US counties, came to -182. The largest single component was natural change, which removed 2,387 people.

Where Raleigh County is

The Census internal point of Raleigh County is at 37.762500, -81.264700. It sits in UTM zone 17N. The map shades West Virginia's 55 county-equivalents by population change from 2020 to 2024, darker for faster growth, with Raleigh County outlined. Dots are towns of 1,000+ people with residents in it.

Towns in Raleigh County

3 incorporated places of 1,000+ people have residents in Raleigh County, 18,874 people together, or 26% of the county. Each figure counts only the part of the town inside Raleigh County; towns marked "part" extend into another county. The largest is Beckley with 16,515.

Counties bordering Raleigh County

The Census 2024 county adjacency file lists 6 neighbors for Raleigh County. The most populous is Kanawha County, WV, with 173,906 residents. Distances run between Census internal points in a straight line.

• Kanawha County

  173,906 people

  42 mi NNW

• Mercer County

  57,524 people

  26 mi SSE

• Fayette County

  38,600 people

  21 mi NNE

• Boone County

  20,496 people

  30 mi NW

• Wyoming County

  19,964 people

  19 mi SW

• Summers County

  11,544 people

  24 mi ESE

Distance to Charleston and the nearest big city

Charleston is 43.9 miles NNW of Raleigh County's internal point in a straight line. The nearest place of 100,000 or more is Winston-Salem, NC (population 255,769), 127.4 miles away. The nearest place of 10,000 or more is Beckley, WV (population 16,515), 5.7 miles away.

Raleigh County FIPS code

The FIPS code of Raleigh County is 54081: state code 54 for West Virginia plus county code 081. Use it as text, with the leading zero, when joining Census, BLS, or CDC county tables. SAIPE lists its 2023 median household income as $53,456.