Preston County, West Virginia Population and Demographics

In this article, we'll explore the population statistics for Preston County, West Virginia, including popular demographics data like median age, number of households, household income, gender, employment and unemployment rates, occupations, religion, and more.

We are using the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year survey data from the US Census Bureau, which is accurate up to 2021.

Table of Contents

Population

There is a lot of data that lets us see how many people live in Preston County, West Virginia. The most basic data is the total population, which is the total number of people living in Preston County, West Virginia. The estimated population of Preston County, West Virginia is 34,266 people, with a median age of 43.5.

We can look at the total population in Preston County over the last 5 years to see how much it has changed.

Year Population Change 5-Year Change
2021
34,266
+1.95%
+1.50%
2020
33,610
 -0.22% -
2019
33,683
 -0.46% -
2018
33,837
+0.23%
-
2017
33,760
 - -

Population of Preston County, West Virginia by Race and Ethnicity

We can also look at how the population has changed over the last 5 years by each of the race/ethnicity types as defined by the US Census Bureau.

Race 2021 2017 Change
White
91.3%
91.9%
 -0.65%
Black/African American
4.5%
4.4%
 +2.27%
Native
0.3%
0.5%
 -40.00%
Hispanic
1.5%
2.1%
 -28.57%
Asian
0.3%
0.1%
 +200.00%
Hawaiian/Pacific Islander
0%
0.1%
 -100.00%
Two Or More Races
2.1%
0.8%
 +162.50%
Other
0.1%
0.1%
 0.00%

This data can be very important for a number of reasons, including social and economic research, planning and development, and marketing to a multi-cultural population.

Note that the Native group includes both Native American and Alaskan Native people.

Population of Preston County, West Virginia by Age and Gender

The age and gender of a population is another interesting demographic statistic because it lets us track trends in the population over time. For example, we can see how the population has changed over the last 5 years by median age as a total, and also by male and female.

Year Total Male Female
2021 43.5 +0.46% 42.4 +0.24% 44.7 -0.45%
2020 43.3 +1.41% 42.3 +1.2% 44.9 +1.35%
2019 42.7 +0.71% 41.8 +1.95% 44.3 +0.91%
2018 42.4 -0.47% 41 -0.97% 43.9 -0.45%
2017 42.6 - 41.4 - 44.1 -

The median age of Preston County, West Virginia gives you an idea of the age distribution, with half of the population being older than the median age and half being younger.

This can then be used to infer and compare against birth rates, parent ages, and more metrics to understand the population. For example, an increasing median age indicates an aging population, which can be a sign of a declining population in terms of birth rates and workforce participation.

Age 2021 2017
(Years) Male Female Male Female
0 to 9 1,930 +6.4% 1,824 -6.47% 2,028 1,703
10 to 19 1,736 -6.66% 1,639 +4.07% 1,612 1,701
20 to 29 2,257 -3.04% 1,852 -2.32% 2,189 1,809
30 to 39 2,566 -0.52% 2,094 +0.68% 2,551 2,103
40 to 49 2,201 +5.44% 2,069 -3.24% 2,321 1,990
50 to 59 2,551 0.04% 2,302 -10.27% 2,551 2,074
60 to 69 2,364 +2.71% 2,414 +12.57% 2,423 2,731
70+ 1,774 +19.31% 2,187 +7.24% 2,133 2,347

Median Household Income

The latest median household income of Preston County, West Virginia is $55,755.00.

In simple terms, the median income is the middle income of a group of people. Half of the people in the group make more than the median income, and half make less. The median income is a good indicator of the overall income of a group of people, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more.

Median Income by Age

We can also look at the median income by age to see how the median income varies by age, and how it compares to the overall median income for Preston County.

  • Under 25
    $55,292.00
  • 25 to 44
    $65,133.00
  • 45 to 64
    $65,893.00
  • 65 and over
    $42,251.00

Average Household Income

Whenever we ask what is the average household income in Preston County, we are actually talking about the mean household income.

This is calculated by adding up all the incomes of all the households in Preston County, and then dividing that number by the total number of households. This is a good way to get a general idea of the average income of a group of people, but it can be skewed by a very high or very low incomes.

The average household income of Preston County, West Virginia is currently $69,165.00.

In terms of accurately summarizing income at a geographic level, the median income is a better metric than the average income because it isn't affected by a small number of very high or very low incomes.

If you had an area where the average income was greater than the median, it can mean that there is significant income inequality, with income being concentrated in a small number of wealthy households.

3.33% of households in Preston County are classed as high income households (making $200,000+ per year).

Household Income Tiers

The US Census Bureau divides households into income tiers based on the median income for the area. This is a good way to compare the income of Preston County against other areas.

  • Less than $24,999
    21.60%
  • $25,000 to $49,999
    24.45%
  • $50,000 to $74,999
    17.93%
  • $75,000 to $99,999
    13.05%
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    14.83%
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    4.81%
  • $200,000 or more
    3.33%

Per Capita Income

The per capita income in Preston County is $26,504.00.

Per capita income is the average income of a person in a given area. It is calculated by dividing the total income of Preston County by the total population of Preston County.

This is different from the average or mean income because it includes and accounts for all people in Preston County, West Virginia, including people like children, the elderly, unemployed people, retired people, and more.

Education Levels

We can also look at the education levels in Preston County to see how many people have a high school degree, a bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree.

Educational attainment is a good indicator of the overall education level of a population, and can be used to compare against other metrics such as the average income, per capita income, and more to see how education levels affect income, unemployment rates, and more.

  • Master's degree or higher
    7.84%
  • Bachelor's degree
    17.15%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    8.59%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    64.33%
  • Less than high school diploma
    2.09%

Employment

Employment rates are all based around the total population in Preston County that are over the age of 16.

The total population of Preston County over the age of 16 is 28,579.

Of those people, a total of 51.80% are working or actively looking for work. This is called the labor force participation rate.

The participation rate is a useful market measure because it shows the relative amount of labor resources available to the economy.

The employment to total population rate in Preston County is 47.40%.

Employment by Age

We can look at the employment rates by age to see how it compares to the overall employment rate.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
16 to 19 years 1,357 32.90% 27.70%
20 to 24 years 1,694 83.20% 15.50%
25 to 29 years 2,304 70.70% 10.30%
30 to 34 years 2,209 63.70% 12.70%
35 to 44 years 4,541 67.20% 4.10%
45 to 54 years 4,632 69.80% 4.20%
55 to 59 years 2,208 60.00% 8.80%
60 to 64 years 2,725 49.70% 9.20%
65 to 74 years 4,268 19.40% 8.60%
75 years and over 2,641 4.50% 0.00%

Employment by Race

Another very interesting employment statistic we can look at is the employment and unemployment rates by race in Preston County. The table below shows the rates for each of the ethnicity groups types defined by the US Census Bureau.

Age Population Participation Unemployment Rate
White 26,245 55.20% 8.50%
Black or African American 1,528 4.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaska Native 97 0.00% 0.00%
Asian 84 40.50% 0.00%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.00% 0.00%
Other 83 4.80% 0.00%
Two or more races 542 42.10% 11.00%
Hispanic or Latino 485 6.60% 0.00%
Not Hispanic or Latino 25,910 55.80% 8.50%

Occupations

In this section we can look at the most common occupations in Preston County as well as the gender breakdown and earnings of them.

The total population of civilian employees that are 16 years old or older in Preston County is 13,541, with median earnings of $34,945.00.

Women in Preston County, West Virginia earning approximately 65.20% of the men's earnings.

Population Earnings
Total 13,541 $34,945.00
Male 7,152 $43,452.00
Female 6,389 $28,342.00

Occupations by Category

In the table below, we can break down the population and earnings even further by occupation. The list of occupation categories below will show you how many people are employed in each category and the median earnings of each profession.

Occupation Employed Earnings
Management 828 $59,000.00
Business and Financial 370 $45,714.00
Computer and Mathematical 244 $78,500.00
Architecture and Engineering 229 $78,375.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 104 $68,026.00
Community and Social Service 369 $52,598.00
Legal 76 $29,688.00
Educational and Library 723 $42,067.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 106 $25,645.00
Healthcare Practitioners 723 $54,141.00
Healthcare Support 835 $22,264.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 118 $43,056.00
Law Enforcement 95 $43,839.00
Food Preparation and Serving 611 $13,516.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 682 $25,089.00
Personal Care and Service 435 $16,921.00
Sales 1,089 $20,930.00
Office and Administrative Support 1,541 $32,739.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 139 $38,491.00
Construction and Extraction 1,397 $53,281.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 739 $53,914.00
Production 721 $47,934.00
Transportation and Material Moving 803 $42,266.00

Occupations by Gender

The table below shows the same occupations from the list above, but we have split them by male and female to see how many male and females work in each occupation, the median earnings, and the male to female ratio of earnings.

That last metric is important because it can be used to look at the gender pay gap between men and women.

Occupation Male Female
Population Earnings Population Earnings
Management 420 $62,037.00 408 $49,292.00
Business and Financial 162 $61,316.00 208 $37,917.00
Computer and Mathematical 170 $78,158.00 74 $78,981.00
Architecture and Engineering 229 $78,375.00 0 $0.00
Life, Physical, and Social Science 61 $49,896.00 43 $69,145.00
Community and Social Service 167 $29,125.00 202 $53,438.00
Legal 34 $115,750.00 42 $27,813.00
Educational and Library 180 $42,292.00 543 $41,863.00
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 49 $26,750.00 57 $20,521.00
Healthcare Practitioners 92 $67,969.00 631 $50,650.00
Healthcare Support 35 $0.00 800 $22,549.00
Firefighters and Protective Service 113 $43,403.00 5 $0.00
Law Enforcement 95 $43,839.00 0 $0.00
Food Preparation and Serving 191 $17,125.00 420 $12,069.00
Building and Grounds Cleaning 361 $27,917.00 321 $17,344.00
Personal Care and Service 43 $0.00 392 $15,610.00
Sales 349 $35,852.00 740 $17,740.00
Office and Administrative Support 353 $21,250.00 1,188 $33,258.00
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry 139 $38,491.00 0 $0.00
Construction and Extraction 1,397 $53,281.00 0 $0.00
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 735 $53,783.00 4 $0.00
Production 642 $49,133.00 79 $22,813.00
Transportation and Material Moving 680 $44,328.00 123 $31,582.00

Households and Family Size

A household defined bu the US Census Bureau is a group of people who occupy a housing unit. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, group of rooms, or single room occupied as separate living quarters.

There are currently 12,510 households in Preston County, with an average household size of 2.53 people.

A family is defined as a group of two or more people related by birth, marriage, or adoption who live together in the same household.

There are 8,612 families in Preston County with an average family size of 3.04 people.

Households by Marital Status

The four categories of household by marital status are:

  • Married-couple family
  • Male householder with no spouse present
  • Female household with no spouse present
  • Nonfamily household

The table below shows the total number of households and families, with the average sizes of each.

Married Male Female Nonfamily
Total Households 7,100 352 1,160 3,898
Average Household Size 3 3.64 3.54 1.26
Total Families 7,100 352 1,160 0
Average Household Size 2.98 3.38 3.29 0

Poverty

Of the 8,612 families in Preston County, 9.50% are considered to be below the poverty threshold.

The table below shows the latest poverty thresholds in Preston County:

Household Size Poverty Threshold
1 Person $14,580.00
2 People $19,720.00
3 People $24,860.00
4 People $30,000.00
5 People $35,140.00
6 People $40,280.00
7 People $45,420.00
8 People $50,560.00

Housing

There are 15,154 housing units in Preston County, West Virginia.

The table below shows the split between occupied and vacant units:

Total Percentage
Occupied 12,510 82.55%
Vacant 2,644 17.45%

11.87% of the total 15,154 housing units in Preston County are rental units. This is approximately 1,799 properties.

For owner-occupied housing units, a total of 10,099 are occupied by the owner - or 66.64% of the total.

Rental Rates

The median rent for a property in Preston County is $672.00.

In the chart below, we can look at the number of rental properties in Preston County that fall into a particular rent range. These can then be used to compare with other areas, or to see how they have changed over time.

  • No rent paid
    612
  • Less than $500
    350
  • $500 to $999
    1,190
  • $1,000 to $1,499
    227
  • $1,500 to $1,999
    32
  • $2,000 to $2,499
    0
  • $2,500 to $2,999
    0
  • $3,000 or more
    0

Property Value

The median value of a property in Preston County is $128,800.00.

Just like with rental rates, we can look at the number of properties in Preston County that fall into a particular value range.

  • Less than $50,000
    2,077
  • $50,000 to $99,999
    1,877
  • $100,000 to $149,999
    1,864
  • $150,000 to $199,999
    1,638
  • $200,000 to $299,999
    1,522
  • $300,000 to $499,999
    789
  • $500,000 to $999,999
    297
  • $1,000,000 or more
    35

Property Age

We can also look at the age of properties in Preston County. The chart below shows the number of properties in Preston County that fall into a particular age range.

  • 1939 or earlier
    2,668
  • 1940 to 1949
    666
  • 1950 to 1959
    913
  • 1960 to 1969
    857
  • 1970 to 1979
    2,664
  • 1980 to 1989
    2,225
  • 1990 to 1999
    2,246
  • 2000 to 2009
    2,106
  • 2010 to 2013
    801
  • 2014 or later
    8

Vehicles per Household

The number of vehicles available per household can be a good indicator of the level of affluence in an area. The chart below shows the number of households in Preston County that have a particular number of vehicles available.

  • No vehicles available
    808
  • 1 vehicle available
    3,461
  • 2 vehicles available
    5,233
  • 3 or more vehicles available
    3,008

Commuting to Work

In this section, we can also look at how people in Preston County get to work. The chart below shows the number of people in Preston County that commute to work in a particular way.

31.6 minutes is the average travel time to work for people in Preston County.

These commute times can be compared to other date like income and educational levels to see how they relate to each other and if there are any trends in the data that might suggest a correlation.

  • Less than 5 minutes
    497
  • 5 to 9 minutes
    1,003
  • 10 to 14 minutes
    1,213
  • 15 to 19 minutes
    1,053
  • 20 to 24 minutes
    1,353
  • 25 to 29 minutes
    1,061
  • 30 to 34 minutes
    1,889
  • 35 to 39 minutes
    648
  • 40 to 44 minutes
    684
  • 45 to 59 minutes
    1,244
  • 60 to 89 minutes
    1,355
  • 90 or more minutes
    497

Summary

We've covered a LOT of demographic and population data for Preston County, West Virginia in this article! Hopefully you have found it very useful in your research of the area.

If you use any of the data found on this page, please consider linking back to USPopulation.org as the source and if you have any feedback or data requests, click here to contact us.

Places in Preston County, West Virginia

We have data for 16 places in Preston County, West Virginia. Click on a place below to see more information about the demographics of that place.