Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
What it saves you on housing, it gives back elsewhere. Health is its weak spot (D) — residents are less healthy than 95% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Incomes are weaker too: the median household income is $61K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. It also trails on hazard risk (D−): FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Its strongest subject is cost of living: a typical home costs about $136K, 2.4 years of the county’s $57K median household income. Walkability is another plus (A): it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 89% of U.S. towns. The overall grade lands at C, 34th of 61 in West Virginia. Set against the rest, it does better than 30% of U.S. towns.
Figures: home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · health, CDC PLACES · FEMA National Risk Index.
Where New Martinsville beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
North Street Historic DistrictWhere New Martinsville’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within West Virginia), ordered by how far New Martinsville is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 228 in 1850, a peak of 7,109 in 1980, 5,204 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1899 and 5 maps from 1906 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in New Martinsville, 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 New Martinsville.
New Martinsville draws workers from Paden City and beyond and looks healthier within West Virginia than nationally, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims.
Within West Virginia it is less healthy than 68% of the 61 graded towns: much of West Virginia scores lower on these measures.
44% of adults sleep under 7 hours in New Martinsville. The town tracks West Virginia closely on all 32 CDC measures. Two figures for adults here: 36% get no exercise outside work, 46% have high blood pressure.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 44% | 40% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 32% | 25% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 46% | 44% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 17% | 14% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The public schools here belong to the Wetzel County Schools. Of its 3 schools, two are listed below, each with the reason. 2 public schools serve New Martinsville, with 1,124 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Martinsville SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 837 | C |
| Magnolia High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 287 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WV on state tests and graduation
2,887 jobs are based in New Martinsville, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 17 minutes, against 26.6 across West Virginia.
27% of working residents work locally in New Martinsville, where West Virginia’s towns sit at 13% and U.S. towns at 8%. The mean commuting time locally is 17 minutes. Half of commuters travel less than 19 miles. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in New Martinsville dropped by 171, to 2,887.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 27% | 13% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 17 minutes | 21 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 17% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $59,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
230 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 39 properties have flooded more than once.
230 flood insurance claims have been paid in New Martinsville since 1978. Among 61 West Virginia towns, just 4 have a higher FEMA hazard score than New Martinsville. Federal disaster aid has reached households in New Martinsville after 10 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
79% of households live in a home they own in New Martinsville, above both the West Virginia town median (68%) and the median of U.S. towns (73%). The typical home value locally is about $136,000, up 1.9% in a year, 23% below the West Virginia typical home. In New Martinsville, the midpoint rent is $688 a month.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $688 a month | $882 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 79% | 68% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Winters in New Martinsville are chilly and summers warm. Summer afternoons peak near 85° in July, and January nights bottom out around 22°; snowfall runs to about 27 inches a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
New Martinsville's reported crime rate is well below West Virginia's. For New Martinsville, the property offense rate is 0.8 per 1,000 residents. 9 violent crimes were reported in 2025.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 16.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.8 per 1,000 residents | 1.6 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The biggest park or preserve is Lewis Wetzel Park, at 21 acres. 0.2 miles of trail wind through 2 parks and preserves. Only 3 of the 54 West Virginia towns we compare have a lower concentration of trails than New Martinsville.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.8% | 2.5% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lewis Wetzel Park | — | 21 |
| 2. Bruce Park | 0.1 mi | 9 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The share of adults 25 and older in New Martinsville who hold a bachelor’s degree or more: 24%. No age group stands out against West Virginia: all are within 4 points. This West Virginia town is shrinking: down 3.3% since 2020, to 5,039 residents (2025 estimate). The midpoint age for New Martinsville comes to 44.5 years.
| New Martinsville | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 18% | 20% | 22% |
| Median age | 44.5 years | 42 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 22% | 21% | 18% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 24% | 29% | 29% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.6 points. Across West Virginia, 50.1% of residents are women.
| New Martinsville | WV | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.1% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.2% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12.6% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.2% | 12% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.9% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.7% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 11.6% | 12.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.7% | 8.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.8% | 10.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 38.9% | 39.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.4% | 17.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.1% | 8.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15.2% | 14.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.6% | 9.7% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
None within 15 miles of New Martinsville; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 New Martinsville residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across West Virginia.
3 places in New Martinsville on the National Register of Historic Places.
5 notable people were born in New Martinsville.
City in West Virginia, US
New Martinsville is a city in and the county seat of Wetzel County, West Virginia, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 5,186 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
New Martinsville grades C overall, better than 30% of U.S. towns and #34 of 61 in West Virginia. It grades D for health and C for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
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 A.
5 notable people were born here, including John Murtha and John F. Lacey.
