Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Lynchburg's standout: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 96% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades C−, ranked 222nd of 249 in Virginia. Natural-hazard risk is low. Its weakest subject is schools: its public schools trail 87% of Virginia towns on state tests and graduation. 48% of working residents work locally in Lynchburg, above both the Virginia town median (4.8%) and the median of U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include Carter Glass House and Centerview. Among 253 Virginia towns, just 10 have a lower average trip to work than Lynchburg.
Where Lynchburg beats most towns.
Carter Glass House| College | Students |
|---|---|
| Liberty University | 15,799 |
| Central Virginia Community College | 2,417 |
| University of Lynchburg | 2,155 |
Carter Glass House is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier. Its 63 National Register listings are more than in 97% of Virginia towns with a listing.
Census counts: 4,630 in 1830, 79,009 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1857 and 5 maps from 1944 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Lynchburg is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D for schools (better than 13%), so the C− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Lynchburg, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Lynchburg.
Lynchburg is shaped by its college students, draws workers from Timberlake and beyond and fares better on crime within Virginia than nationally.
45,575 jobs are based in Lynchburg, 1.7 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 16.8 minutes, against 27.3 across Virginia.
19% of residents live below the poverty line in Lynchburg. The top destinations are Forest (5%), Roanoke (3%) and Timberlake (2%). Lynchburg’s median household income is $58,000.
| Lynchburg | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 19% | 7.7% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $58,000 | $102,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 14% | 18% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Each of its 3 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its D, Timberlake highest at B+.
Its public schools are run by the Lynchburg City Public Schools. Three of its 30 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandusky MiddleLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 583 | D |
| E.C. Glass HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,220 | B− |
| Paul Munro ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 356 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VA on state tests and graduation
46 miles of trail in 26 parks and preserves. The trail density in Lynchburg is 0.9 miles per square mile. Blackwater Creek Natural Area, at 392 acres with 7.6 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Lynchburg | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.9 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.3% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Blackwater Creek Natural Area | 7.6 mi | 392 |
| 2. Peaks View Park | 7.3 mi | 287 |
| 3. Riverside Park | 1.6 mi | 53 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
21.8% of residents are enrolled in college, against 6.9% statewide, which pulls the median age down.
Adults 18 to 34 are 39% of residents (23% statewide); adults 35 to 64 are 27% of residents (39% statewide). 14% of Lynchburg residents are 65 or older. Lynchburg has grown 3% since 2020, to 81,347 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Lynchburg | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 28.6 years | 38.5 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 19% | 23% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 14% | 16% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 39% | 44% | 29% |
53.2% women, 46.8% men
About 88 men for every 100 women. Across Virginia, 50.6% of residents are women. Median age: women 29.6, men 27.5.
| Lynchburg | VA | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.1% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.3% | 10.1% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 24.5% | 9.3% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 14.7% | 13.5% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 9.4% | 13.6% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 8.2% | 12.5% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 9.6% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 7.9% | 9.9% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.5% | 6.8% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9% | 8.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 24.8% | 23.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 20% | 17.7% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.7% | 7.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 23% | 23.7% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.5% | 18.5% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
90 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 18 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 81% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 90 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Lynchburg.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The typical Lynchburg home is worth about $264,000, up 0.7% in a year, 36% below the Virginia typical home.
| Lynchburg | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,073 a month | $1,764 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 52% | 47% | 48% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 31.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 61% of Virginia’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 1,863 to 1,601 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Lynchburg has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 26° and about 12 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 8,326 U.S. towns with household incomes like Lynchburg’s, it is healthier than 79%, so its B− isn’t only a matter of income.
Lynchburg beats the Virginia average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 9.
| Lynchburg | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 34% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 22% | 23% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Lynchburg | VA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 6.8% | 7.7% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 10.1% | 7.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Lynchburg. Close and well known come first.
14 mi ParkwayBlue Ridge Parkway16.5M visitors a year
20 mi National Historical ParkAppomattox Court House National Historical Park77K visitors a year
31 mi LakeSmith Mountain Lake
19 mi LandmarkNational D-Day Memorial
30 mi LandmarkRed Hill Patrick Henry National Memorialin town MuseumMaier Museum of Art at Randolph CollegeBlue Ridge Parkway: Ken Thomas, Public domain · Appomattox Court House National Historical Park: Doug Coldwell, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Smith Mountain Lake: Jay White, Public domain · National D-Day Memorial: RebelAt at English Wikipedia, Public domain · Red Hill Patrick Henry National Memorial: Jamestown Official Photo Corp., Public domain
7 within 15 miles of the center of Lynchburg
College town 22 of every 100 Lynchburg residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
6 colleges in town.
63 places in Lynchburg on the National Register of Historic Places.
48 notable people were born in Lynchburg.
3 towns share a border with Lynchburg.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its C−; Forest (B−) is closest.
| Town | VA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lynchburg | #222 | C− | C+ | C | D | B− |
| Timberlake | #73 | A | B+ | — | B+ | B |
| Madison Heights | #166 | B− | A− | — | B | C− |
| Forest | #180 | B− | C+ | — | C | A− |
Timberlake, Madison Heights and Forest report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Lynchburg with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Lynchburg grades C− overall, better than 17% of U.S. towns and #222 of 249 in Virginia. It grades B− for health, C for safety and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 3.8 years of the area's median household income ($68,996 across the Lynchburg, 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 C+.
48 notable people were born here, including Desmond Doss and Jerry Falwell.
