Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Beckley earns a D, ranked 54th of 61 in West Virginia, mostly because of safety and health. Its police reported 117 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025, a higher rate per resident than 99% of U.S. towns. Residents are less healthy than 98% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. In its favor, natural-hazard risk is low. 29% of residents live below the poverty line in Beckley, against 16% in West Virginia’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On cost of living, just 14 of West Virginia’s 141 towns do worse. Beckley is home to West Virginia University Institute of Technology.
Where Beckley beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 144 in 1880, 17,286 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 6 maps from 1913 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within West Virginia), ordered by how far Beckley is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for hazard risk (better than 97% of comparable towns) to D− for safety (better than 1%), so the D overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Beckley. Close and well known come first.
5 mi National PreserveNew River Gorge National Park and Preserve2.0M visitors a year
10 mi Park & preserveThe Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve
in town MuseumPhillips-Sprague Mine
14 mi MuseumThurmond
39 mi MuseumLost World Caverns
16 mi National park siteBluestone National Scenic River12K visitors a yearNew River Gorge National Park and Preserve: NKS22, Public domain · The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve: Lisa Strader, CC BY 2.0 · Phillips-Sprague Mine: Coal town guy, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Thurmond: Brian M. Powell (user Bitmapped on en.wikipedia), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Lost World Caverns: Lee Paxton, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bluestone National Scenic River: Dave Bieri, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Beckley, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Beckley.
Beckley carries less natural-hazard risk than nearly all of West Virginia (mostly inland flooding) and draws workers from Oak Hill and beyond, but it reports violent crime at 3 times the West Virginia rate.
Violent crime runs at 7.2 per 1,000 residents, 3 times the West Virginia rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D−. Property crime runs at 70.8 per 1,000 residents, 6 times the West Virginia rate, most of it theft.
Beckley’s property crime rate is 70.8 per 1,000 residents. Only 1 of the 31 West Virginia towns we compare have a higher violent crime rate than Beckley. Beckley reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 99% report less.
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.2 per 1,000 residents | 1.6 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 70.8 per 1,000 residents | 16.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its public schools are run by the Raleigh County Schools. Three of its 9 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beckley-Stratton Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 590 | D |
| Woodrow Wilson High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,284 | A− |
| Crescent ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 304 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WV on state tests and graduation
19% of Beckley adults have diabetes. Beckley beats the West Virginia average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12. 20% of Beckley adults report frequent physical distress.
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 16% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 46% | 40% | 36% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 49% | 44% | 35% |
| What stands out | Beckley | WV |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 16% | 11% |
| More adults facing food insecurity | 23% | 16.2% |
| More adults facing housing insecurity | 17% | 12.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
17,417 jobs are based in Beckley, 2.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 16.5 minutes, against 26.6 across West Virginia.
40% of Beckley’s working residents work right in town. The average trip to work in Beckley is 17 minutes. The top destinations are Charleston (4%), Prosperity (2%) and Oak Hill (1%).
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 40% | 13% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 21 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $46,000 | $59,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 7.3% | 10% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk lower than 100% of West Virginia towns, with expected losses of about $189 per resident a year; that rating is what its A+ for hazard risk is built on.
No town among the 61 in West Virginia we compare has a lower FEMA risk score than Beckley. Since 1980, 26 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Beckley.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Beckley Raleigh Co Ap weather station records that about 1 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Beckley has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Among 61 West Virginia towns, just 1 have a lower July high than Beckley.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Home values rose 42% in five years, to about $150K, against 23% across West Virginia.
The typical Beckley home is worth about $150,000, up 2.9% in a year, 15% below the West Virginia typical home. 55% of households own their home in Beckley.
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 55% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $869 a month | $882 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
2.2 miles of trail in 9 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Beckley Soccer Complex, at 45 acres.
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.1% | 2.5% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Beckley Soccer Complex | 0.2 mi | 45 |
| 2. Lewis McManus Walking Trail | — | 13 |
| 3. New River Park | 0.1 mi | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the West Virginia average. Beckley has lost 5.2% of its people since 2020, down to 16,373 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. 29% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 24% across West Virginia.
| Beckley | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 23% | 20% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 21% | 18% |
| Median age | 42.3 years | 42 years | 40.5 years |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.5 points. Across West Virginia, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Beckley | WV | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12.7% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.7% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.8% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.9% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.8% | 12% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.9% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.8% | 12.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.3% | 8.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 9% | 10.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.7% | 39.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.9% | 17.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.2% | 8.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 17.2% | 14.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12% | 9.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
3 within 15 miles of the center of Beckley
About 6 of every 100 Beckley residents are enrolled in college, about the same as West Virginia.
Where Beckley’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 places in Beckley on the National Register of Historic Places.
City in West Virginia, US
Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, and its county seat. The population was 17,286 at the 2020 census, making it the ninth-most populous city in the state. It is the principal city of the Beckley metropolitan area of Southern West Virginia, home to 115,079 residents in 2020. Beckley was founded on April 4, 1838, and was long known for its ties to the coal mining industry. It is the home of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology, as well as an annex of Concord University and the University of Charleston.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Beckley.
| Town | WV rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beckley | #54 | D | B− | D− | B | D− |
| Mabscott | — | — | B+ | — | B | D− |
| MacArthur | — | — | B− | — | B | D− |
| Raleigh | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Mabscott and MacArthur have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Mabscott and MacArthur report no FBI crime data of their own. Raleigh isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Beckley with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Beckley grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #54 of 61 in West Virginia. It grades D− for health, D− for safety and B for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
