Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Vienna grades A overall, 45th among Virginia's 249 graded towns. It is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 97% of the country and the median household earns $217K. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $1.2 million, 9.2 years of the Washington metro’s $127K median household income. 75% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Vienna, where Virginia’s towns sit at 44% and U.S. towns at 29%. Only 5 of Virginia’s 138 towns score higher on civic life. Freeman Store is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Vienna beats most towns.
Census counts: 136 in 1880, 16,473 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1860 and 7 maps from 1915 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Virginia), ordered by how far Vienna is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D for cost of living (better than 13%), so the A overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Vienna. Close and well known come first.
Big draw12 mi National park siteWhite House311K visitors a year
Big draw12 mi National MemorialWashington Monument204K visitors a year
Big draw10 mi LandmarkArlington National Cemetery
Big draw11 mi LandmarkUnited States Triumphal Arch
Big draw13 mi MuseumSmithsonian Institution30.0M visitors a year
Big draw11 mi National MemorialLincoln Memorial7.7M visitors a yearWhite House: This image or media was taken or created by Matt H. Wade. To see his entire port, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Washington Monument: Oren Rozen, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Arlington National Cemetery: Protoant, Public domain · United States Triumphal Arch: Hstoops, CC0 · Smithsonian Institution: Highsmith, Carol M., 1946-, photographer, Public domain · Lincoln Memorial: Aerial_view_of_Lincoln_Memorial_-_east_side.jpg: Carol M. Highsmith derivative w, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Vienna, 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 Vienna.
Vienna fares better on crime within Virginia than nationally and draws workers from Arlington and beyond, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Virginia.
At 9.2 years of the Washington metro’s $127K median household income, the typical home (about $1.16M) costs more against local pay than in 98% of Virginia towns; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living.
Vienna’s median rent is $2,391 a month. The typical Vienna home is worth about $1,162,000, up 2.6% in a year, 3 times the Virginia typical home. 84% of Vienna households own their home.
| Vienna | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,391 a month | $1,760 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 84% | 68% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Fairfax County Public Schools. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marshall Road ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 691 | B |
| Archer ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 543 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within VA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Virginia is tooth loss: 4.9% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 11.1% statewide. Against the 764 U.S. towns with household incomes like Vienna’s, it is healthier than 50%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
12% of adults report frequent mental distress in Vienna. Vienna beats the Virginia average on 23 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 7.4% of adults smoke cigarettes in Vienna.
| Vienna | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 16% | 17% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 34% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 7.4% | 12% | 14% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Vienna | VA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.9% | 11.1% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.7% | 13.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
11,623 jobs are based in Vienna, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. 35.4% of workers work from home, against 18.3% across Virginia.
Most working residents leave Vienna for work: only 6% work in town. Since 2013, Vienna has added 1,670 jobs, to 11,623 in 2023. The top destinations are Washington (13%), Tysons (10%) and Arlington (8%).
| Vienna | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 35% | 17% | 11% |
| Median household income | $217,000 | $101,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 5% | 7.7% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
3.7 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Northside Park, 26 acres with 1.3 miles of trail. The trail density in Vienna is 0.8 miles per square mile.
| Vienna | Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.8 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.3% | 4.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Northside Park | 1.3 mi | 26 |
| 2. Southside Park | 0.4 mi | 17 |
| 3. Washington and Old Dominion Railroad Regional Park | — | 23 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 79% of U.S. communities. Since 2001, 14 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Vienna.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 12.1 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 89% of Virginia’s graded towns.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Vienna has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 87°, January nights drop to 26° and about 6 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
33 within 15 miles of the center of Vienna
About 5 of every 100 Vienna residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across Virginia.
Where Vienna’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
9 notable people were born in Vienna.
Town in Virginia, United States
Vienna () is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, and a suburb of Washington, D.C. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Vienna had a population of 16,562. It was first settled by Europeans in the mid-18th century. In 1861, the Battle of Vienna, one of the earliest American Civil War battles, was fought in Vienna. The Vienna Town Council, which governs the town, is composed of a mayor and six councilmembers. The town's education is served mainly by Fairfax County Public Schools.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Vienna.
| Town | VA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vienna | #45 | A | D | B+ | B+ | A+ |
| Wolf Trap | #52 | A | D | — | B+ | A+ |
| Oakton | #18 | A+ | D | — | B+ | A+ |
| Dunn Loring | #29 | A | C− | — | B+ | A+ |
| Tysons | #55 | A | D | — | B+ | A+ |
Wolf Trap, Oakton, Dunn Loring and Tysons report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Vienna with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Vienna grades A overall, better than 92% of U.S. towns and #45 of 249 in Virginia. It grades A+ for health, B+ for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
9 notable people were born here, including Garrett Roe and Katherine Hadford.
