Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA

Metro Area Profile

310,842 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA metropolitan area.

65out of 100
Area Score
Top 44% of 379 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity249th of 379 metros measured48
GrowthTop 43% of 821 metros measured54
Housing affordabilityTop 48% of 822 metros measured95
ClimateTop 19% of 822 metros measured75
Physical resilienceTop 37% of 822 metros measured65
AccessTop 17% of 822 metros measured95
Economic stability644th of 822 metros measured31
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.0% and median household income $57,792, putting employment conditions in the middle range of published metro profiles.

901 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 13% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

A major airport is 9 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

At a glance

Population
310,842
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$57,792
Bottom 21% nationally
Density
155/sq mi
2010.5 sq mi of land
Median age
45.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Metro area
Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA
Nearest major airport
TRI
9 mi · Tri-Cities
Median home value
$198,400
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.0% is lower than 60% of the 379 measured US metros.

Employment fell 1.1% over the past year, to 131,956 employed residents.

Median household income of $57,792 is below 79% of measured US metros.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$1,597$57,792Bottom 21%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$815$34,596Bottom 44%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate15.1%Top 39%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute25.2 minTop 38%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher23.9%Bottom 46%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Employment131,956Top 45%of 379June 2026
Employment change (3 years)2.3%Top 23%of 379June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-1.1%Bottom 39%of 379June 2026
Labor force137,405Top 46%of 379June 2026
Labor force participation53.8%Bottom 14%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$56,140Bottom 23%of 3812025 OEWS
Median annual wage$45,240Bottom 23%of 3812025 OEWS
Metro employment119,560Top 47%of 3812025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)0.0%Bottom 46%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate4.0%Bottom 40%of 379June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032025/102026/065.53.0
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.0% in June 2026. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.
Largest occupations — Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Fast Food and Counter Workers4,170$26,890
Retail Salespersons3,620$31,200
Cashiers3,090$27,420
Stockers and Order Fillers2,910$35,760
Registered Nurses2,660$76,730
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand2,610$35,300

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

Median rent of $849 takes 18% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 3.4 times median household income here, above the historic benchmark of about three times income.

Rent as a share of income
17.6%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.4×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$849
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$198,400
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price to income3.43Top 41%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate74.1%Top 23%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±209149,760Top 17%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$20$849Bottom 23%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$3,922$198,400Bottom 44%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income17.6%Bottom 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate12.6%Top 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →
Development Momentum
54/ 100
Top 43% of 821 published city profiles
Permitting is increasing, measured from 2024 to 2025.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has grown 2% since 2020, reaching 313,876 in 2024.

Population is still rising, but more slowly than in the preceding year.

New construction is predominantly single-family: only 9% of permitted units are in buildings of five or more homes.

At 2.9 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US metros.

Units permitted
901
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.9
Top 46% nationally
Year over year
−13%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
9.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024314k308k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population.

Weather & climate

7 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 86°F and January a low of 26°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 44.0 inches, including 9.2 inches of snow.

20°40°60°80°100°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station BRISTOL TRI CITY AP, 9.3 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND5.0"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation44.0"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall9.2"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low26°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high86°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing39°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today.

Physical risk

65 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are earthquake, cold wave and landslide.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 73% of measured US metros.

LandslideElevated
EarthquakeElevated
Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: strong wind, lightning, inland flooding, winter weather, hurricane, tornado, wildfire, drought, ice storm, hail, avalanche, heat wave.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

What this profile does not cover

Three things people look for are missing from every AreaProfile page, and each is missing for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offences reported to police are published by department rather than by town, and only where a department reported every month of the year. No municipal department reports for this place — many smaller communities are policed by the county — so there is no figure to show. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Taxes and full cost of living
No public source publishes either with national coverage and a method open enough to check. Housing affordability above is computed from published rent, price and income, and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes — commuting cost in particular tends to offset suburban housing savings. Nothing here is individualised tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house. School attendance zones, insurance pricing and the character of a neighbourhood all vary within the places measured here.

Access

2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 9 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Tri-CitiesTRI9 mi8,000 ft
Asheville RgnlAVL81 mi8,002 ft
Mc Ghee TysonTYS103 mi10,000 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
65
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)

Profile recalculated August 30, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology or browse every source.