Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Tazewell gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $164K, 3.2 years of the Bluefield area’s $51K median household income. It grades C overall, ranked 205th of 249 in Virginia. The low prices come with trade-offs. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 85% of the country, and the median household income is $35K, and 25% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, its schools outperform 76% of the state's. 25% of residents live below the poverty line in Tazewell, against 7.7% in Virginia’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. No town among the 253 in Virginia we compare has a lower median household income than Tazewell. Tazewell's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 90% of U.S. towns.
Where Tazewell beats most towns.
James Wynn House
Census counts: 508 in 1880, 4,486 in 2020. The archive holds 32 old photos and papers going back to 1928 and 6 maps from 1916 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Tazewell is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Tazewell, 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 Tazewell.
Tazewell pairs an A− for schools with modest home prices, draws workers from Bluefield and beyond and fares better on crime within Virginia than nationally.
The median property tax bill is $708, against $2,790 across Virginia, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Tazewell’s median rent is $708 a month. Typical home values rose 5.4% in the year to September 2026. 58% of Tazewell households own their home.
| Tazewell | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $708 a month | $1,764 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 58% | 68% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A− for schools comes with a B+ for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $164K.
Its public schools are run by the Tazewell County Public Schools. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Tazewell High, with 509 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tazewell PrimaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–2 | Grades PK–2 | 405 | – |
| Tazewell HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 509 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VA on state tests and graduation
3,115 jobs are based in Tazewell, 1.9 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
About one in 4 of Tazewell’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Tazewell fell to 3,115 in 2023, 455 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Richlands (3%), Claypool Hill (3%) and Bluefield (3%).
| Tazewell | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 1,191 U.S. towns with household incomes like Tazewell’s, it is healthier than 76%, so its C− isn’t only a matter of income.
27% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Tazewell. Tazewell beats the Virginia average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 15. 43% of adults have high blood pressure in Tazewell.
| Tazewell | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 12% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 43% | 33% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 11% | 12% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 22% | 23% |
| What stands out | Tazewell | VA |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 80.3% | 76.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 10.5% | 6.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
| Tazewell | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.5% | 4.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Tazewell has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. The July high in Tazewell is 82°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 22.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 60% of Virginia’s graded towns. Reported crimes rose from 58 to 82 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 51% of U.S. communities. Since 1980, 29 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Tazewell.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
None within 15 miles of Tazewell; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Tazewell residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
Where Tazewell’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
4 places in Tazewell on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Tazewell.
Town in Virginia, United States
Tazewell () is a town in Tazewell County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, Tazewell had a population of 4,486. It is part of the Bluefield micropolitan area, which has a population of 107,578. It is the county seat of Tazewell County.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Tazewell grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #205 of 249 in Virginia. It grades C− for health, C+ for safety and A− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a C−.
Not for the 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+.
7 notable people were born here, including Kathryn Harrold and Fred M. Wilcox.
