About one in 14 people in Alexandria city, Virginia, has a disability
In Alexandria city, 7.4% of people reported a disability. That is lower than in 99% of U.S. counties.
Less distressed than 79% of U.S. counties.
What drives Alexandria city's score
In Alexandria city, housing costs are the highest-scoring part, at 68.2. Jobs are the lowest part, at 12.5. About one in 10 adults aged 25 to 54 (9.9%, 2020 to 2024) isn't working, a lower share than in 97% of U.S. counties.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Alexandria city: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Even so, Alexandria city is worse off than most counties on rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income (23.6%, fiscal year 2027).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 68.2 of 100
Housing costs
Biggest factorRenters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent19.9% · 2020 to 202460th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income23.6% · fiscal year 202775th percentile
-
- 33.1 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector17.0% · August 202526th percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people106.9 · 202539th percentile
-
- 32.3 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.6% · August 202533rd percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind5.1% · August 202549th percentile
- People with a subprime credit score30.3% · second quarter of 202613th percentile
-
- 17.3 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line7.5% · 20245th percentile
- Children below the poverty line11.7% · 202421st percentile
- People with a disability7.4% · 2020 to 20240th percentile
- People without health insurance8.8% · 2020 to 202457th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$123,840 · 20241st percentile
-
- 12.5 of 100
Jobs
Unemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year3.3% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202622nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working9.9% · 2020 to 20242nd percentile
-
Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Alexandria city comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Alexandria city, 13.0% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Alexandria city
Virginia
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Alexandria city, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 7.6% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about nine times as much as benefit checks
In Alexandria city, Virginia, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 7.6%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Alexandria city getting SNAP food aid had its largest rise, from 3.4% in 2011 to 4.2% in 2012.
The share of households in Alexandria city getting SNAP food aid nearly doubled from 2009 to 2024, reaching 5.1%
High on the chart: 5.2% in 2023. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Alexandria city, Virginia.
How Alexandria city has changed
Alexandria city's population had its largest rise, from 137,523 in 2009 to 151,796 in 2014.
Alexandria city's population rose 45% from 1969 to 2024
High on the chart: 159,599 in 2019. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Alexandria city, Virginia.
The number of jobs located in Alexandria city had its largest drop, from 96,328 in 2015 to 83,919 in 2020.
The number of jobs located in Alexandria city was at its highest on the chart in 2015 and is down 16% since
High on the chart: 96,328 in 2015. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Alexandria city, Virginia.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 2.8% | 2025 3.1% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 7.3% | 2024 7.5% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $41,979 | 2024 $123,840 |
The table uses 3.1% for 2025; the score uses 3.3% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Alexandria city's history
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 159,467, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
2023
A thunderstorm in July 2023 did $10 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
-
Since 1972
22 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Alexandria city, 6 of them for flooding. FEMA
Alexandria city beside its neighbors
Of the four counties that border Alexandria city, in Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia, two score higher. For the share of income from benefit checks, Alexandria city ranks 3rd of the four; Prince George's County is highest, at 17.8%.
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prince George's County, MD | 78 | 10.4% | 17.8% |
| District of Columbia, DC | 56 | 16.4% | 12.6% |
| Alexandria city, VA | 20 | 7.5% | 7.6% |
| Fairfax County, VA | 6 | 6.0% | — |
| Arlington County, VA | 4 | 8.0% | 5.5% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Alexandria city the poorest county in Virginia?
No, Alexandria city's poverty rate was 7.5% in 2024, 108th highest of 133 in Virginia (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Radford city, at 27.2%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Alexandria city ranks 108th of 133 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Alexandria city
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
-
Legal Services of Northern Virginia
Legal aid
-
HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Alexandria city · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Alexandria city comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.