Blue RidgeVA
A town of 2,800, settled in 1835.
What should you know before moving to Blue Ridge?
Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 96% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades A−, ranked 96th of 249 in Virginia. Its public schools beat 93% of Virginia towns on state tests and graduation and the median household earns $76K. 13% of the land in Blue Ridge is conserved, against 4.6% in Virginia’s towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. Only 1 of the 253 Virginia towns we compare have a lower share of working residents who work in town than Blue Ridge.
What makes Blue Ridge stand out
Where Blue Ridge beats most towns.
100% of working residents leave Blue Ridge for work
Where Blue Ridge’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
How Blue Ridge grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Blue Ridge is from typical.
Its grades run from A for schools (better than 93% of comparable towns) to D− for walkability (better than 4%), so the A− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Blue Ridge Parkway and 15 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Blue Ridge. Close and well known come first.
in town ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
Big draw31 mi Park & preserveAppalachian Trail3.0M visitors a year
35 mi Stadium & arenaLane Stadium
39 mi LandmarkProject Greek Island
28 mi LakeSmith Mountain Lake
39 mi LakeMountain LakePhoto credits
Blue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Appalachian Trail: Paulba. Original uploader was Paulbalegend at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lane Stadium: User:B, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Project Greek Island: Z22, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Smith Mountain Lake: Jay White, Public domain · Mountain Lake: Rolfmueller, CC BY-SA 3.0
Moving to Blue Ridge: who provides what
Blue Ridge is unincorporated, so Botetourt County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Blue Ridge.
Blue Ridge pairs an A− overall with homes cheaper than the Virginia norm and sends most of its workers to Roanoke and beyond.
About one in three of Blue Ridge’s working residents commute to Roanoke
Blue Ridge has 121 jobs for its 1,426 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
Most working residents leave Blue Ridge for work: only 0% work in town. 2.5% of residents live below the poverty line in Blue Ridge, below both Virginia’s towns (7.7%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Since 2013, Blue Ridge has lost 108 jobs, to 121 in 2023.
| Blue Ridge | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 2.5% | 7.7% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $76,000 | $102,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The typical home in Blue Ridge is valued at about $316K
Blue Ridge grades A− overall with a typical home of about $316K, below the Virginia typical value; only 8 of the 38 Virginia towns graded A− or better can say that.
The typical Blue Ridge home is worth about $316,000, up 5.6% in a year, 23% below the Virginia typical home. 94% of households own their home in Blue Ridge.
| Blue Ridge | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 94% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,287 a month | $1,764 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Blue Ridge has four seasons and pleasant summers
Blue Ridge has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 26° and about 11 inches of snow falls in a winter.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Blue Ridge ranks healthier than 61% of the country’s towns
Blue Ridge beats the Virginia average on 8 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 30% of Blue Ridge adults feel lonely.
| Blue Ridge | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 34% | 33% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 33% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 81% | 79% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 34% | 36% | 36% |
| What stands out | Blue Ridge | VA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 9.3% | 13.1% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.9% | 10.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.4% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Blue Ridge faces a moderate natural-hazard risk, led by inland flooding
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 59% of U.S. communities. Since 1985, 3 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Blue Ridge.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Everything we know about Blue Ridge
Colleges nearby
4 within 15 miles of the center of Blue Ridge
About 2 of every 100 Blue Ridge residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
About Blue Ridge
Census-designated place in Virginia, United States
Blue Ridge is a census-designated place (CDP) in southern Botetourt County, Virginia, United States. The population was 3,185 at the 2020 census. The CDP is located along U.S. Route 460. It is part of the Roanoke metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 6.1 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,263 ft
- ZIP code
- 24064
Blue Ridge’s neighbors
One town shares a border with Blue Ridge.
| Town | VA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Ridge | #96 | A− | B− | — | A | B |
| Laymantown | — | — | B+ | — | A | B+ |
Laymantown has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Blue Ridge and Laymantown report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Blue Ridge with a neighbor →
Questions about Blue Ridge
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Blue Ridge, VA a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Blue Ridge grades A− overall, better than 82% of U.S. towns and #96 of 249 in Virginia. It grades B for health and A for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Blue Ridge, VA expensive?
That is 4.6 years of the area's median household income ($68,761 across the Roanoke, VA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.