26554 — Fairmont, West Virginia

Area Profile

Income, jobs, climate, physical risk and development data for ZIP code 26554. Its median home value runs 12% above Fairmont as a whole, which is why this ZIP carries a profile of its own.

55out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 37% of 3,113 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 12 sources
OpportunityTop 44% of 3,116 ZIP areas measured57
SchoolsTop 28% of 3,047 ZIP areas measured67
Growth2,706th of 3,124 ZIP areas measured28
Housing affordabilityTop 9% of 3,112 ZIP areas measured83
ClimateTop 35% of 3,127 ZIP areas measured74
Physical resilience2,456th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured29
Access2,947th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured58
Economic stability2,209th of 3,127 ZIP areas measured42
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.0% and median household income $69,712, putting employment conditions in the middle range of ZIP areas measured. The unemployment rate is published for Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, rather than for 26554 alone.

In the public schools here, 44% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 14.7 students for every teacher.

4 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, essentially level with the prior year — steady rather than turning. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, rather than for 26554 alone.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
42,118
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$69,712
Bottom 47% nationally
Density
319/sq mi
131.9 sq mi of land
Median age
38.6
2024 ACS 5-Year
City
Fairmont
West Virginia
Micro area
Nearest major airport
LBE
67 mi · Arnold Palmer Rgnl
Median home value
$183,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, is 4.0%, lower than in 64% of the 3,127 measured US ZIP areas.

Employment across Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, grew 0.5% over the past year, to 24,358 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsMarion County, WV’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$47,8557th percentileof 2,996filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftMarion County, WV’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$53,44516th percentileof 2,996filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$5,1872024 ACS 5-Year$69,712Bottom 47%of 31,0492024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,2672024 ACS 5-Year$37,402Top 47%of 32,8222024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year13.3%Bottom 36%of 32,8462024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.0 min2024 ACS 5-Year26.1 minTop 41%of 32,8872024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year31.9%Top 31%of 33,1932024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year73.6%41st percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentFairmont, WV’s figureJuly 202624,358Bottom 26%of 3,127July 2026
Employment change (3 years)Fairmont, WV’s figureJuly 2026−2.3%Bottom 21%of 3,127July 2026
Employment change (year over year)Fairmont, WV’s figureJuly 2026+0.5%Top 27%of 3,127July 2026
Labor forceFairmont, WV’s figureJuly 202625,38126th percentileof 3,127July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year77.7%Bottom 48%of 32,8832024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.4%2024 ACS 5-Year0.6%74th percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)Fairmont, WV’s figureJuly 2026−0.3%Top 38%of 3,127July 2026
Unemployment rateFairmont, WV’s figureJuly 20264.0%Top 36%of 3,127July 2026
Worked from home ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year11.9%61st percentileof 32,7982024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202470k54k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $69,712 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish labor-force data for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Fairmont, WV, the city containing this ZIP code.

44% of students met the state standard in mathematics, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 14.7 students for every full-time teacher across 12 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
13
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
14.7
across 12 of them
Math proficiency
43.8%
Top 31% in West Virginia
Reading proficiency
—
2018-19 school year
The 12 largest of 13 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Fairmont Senior High SchoolMarion County Schools83519.927%—
East Fairmont High SchoolMarion County Schools72517.327%—
East Fairmont Middle SchoolMarion County Schools64714.443%—
West Fairmont Middle SchoolMarion County Schools59213.540%—
Watson Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools38314.742%—
East Dale Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools35213.062%—
East Park Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools32112.347%—
Jayenne Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools31013.567%—
Monongah Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools26614.067%—
Monongah Middle SchoolMarion County Schools19012.752%—
White Hall Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools18411.562%—
Pleasant Valley Elementary SchoolMarion County Schools17913.867%—

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against West Virginia’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the non-metropolitan parts of West Virginia is up 47% over five years, and up 8.7% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,053 a year in real estate taxes, about 0.57% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,007, close to the $978 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,007 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $40,300 a year, about 58% of the median household income here of $69,712.

The typical renter household here spends 26% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $978 a month.

A median home at $183,900 costs 2.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $83,509, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
25.6%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,007
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$978
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$183,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against 26554’s median household income of $69,712, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Home price change (1 year)the non-metropolitan parts of West Virginia’s figure2026 Q2+8.7%98th percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the non-metropolitan parts of West Virginia’s figure2026 Q2+46.6%66th percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the non-metropolitan parts of West Virginia’s figure2026 Q2+67.7%11th percentileof 3,0712026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.22024 ACS 5-Year2.2Top 30%of 29,2752024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year73.2%36th percentileof 32,7502024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±4412024 ACS 5-Year19,70696th percentileof 33,4602024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$838Top 12%of 3,031FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,235Top 5%of 3,031FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,007Top 9%of 3,031FY2026
Median gross rent ±$622024 ACS 5-Year$978Top 47%of 26,3962024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$9,1352024 ACS 5-Year$183,90040th percentileof 30,8122024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$662024 ACS 5-Year$1,05321st percentileof 28,9352024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$4,3032024 ACS 5-Year$83,509Top 49%of 29,8022024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.05%2024 ACS 5-Year0.57%20th percentileof 24,0992024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year25.6%Top 35%of 26,2472024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1482024 ACS 5-Year28189th percentileof 33,7722024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.4%54th percentileof 32,9612024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year8.3%59th percentileof 32,7882024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3732024 ACS 5-Year1,92596th percentileof 33,7722024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures.

Development Momentum

28/ 100
Ranks 2,706 of 3,124 published ZIP profiles

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.

New construction is predominantly single-family: of 4 units permitted over the past twelve months, none were in buildings of five or more homes. The multifamily share is published for Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, rather than for 26554 alone.

At 0.2 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US ZIP areas. The permit rate is published for Fairmont, WV, which contains 26554, rather than for 26554 alone.

Units permitted
4
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
0.2
Bottom 8% nationally
Year over year
0%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
0.0%
units in 5+ unit buildings

People moving in and out

Net migration
+0.3%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
38%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$47,855
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$53,445
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Monongalia County, WV 419 people · 20% of arrivals
  2. Harrison County, WV 328 people · 16% of arrivals
  3. Taylor County, WV 112 people · 5.3% of arrivals
  4. Kanawha County, WV 39 people · 1.9% of arrivals
  5. Lewis County, WV 36 people · 1.7% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Harrison County, WV 362 people · 19% of departures
  2. Monongalia County, WV 347 people · 18% of departures
  3. Taylor County, WV 114 people · 5.9% of departures
  4. Preston County, WV 39 people · 2.0% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for Marion County, WV. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

The Building Permits Survey is not published for ZIP areas. This is the figure for Fairmont, WV, the city containing this ZIP code.

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 25°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 44.8 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station CLARKSBURG BENEDUM AP, 13.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND5.4"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals44.8"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals25°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals86°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals71991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals41°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

29 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and hail, with inland flooding alone responsible for 90% of it. Tornado is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Inland floodingHigh
HailModerate
LightningModerate
Winter weatherModerate

Low or minimal exposure: landslide, hurricane, strong wind, earthquake, ice storm, heat wave, tornado, wildfire, drought, cold wave, avalanche, volcanic activity, tsunami, coastal flooding.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. ZIP values are the land-area-weighted mean of the counties the ZIP Code Tabulation Area intersects. Expected annual loss is not allocated below county level. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

These are deaths, not offenses — they say nothing about burglary, theft or assault.

Homicide
0.0
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
15.0
per 100,000 residents · modeled, not measured
Drug overdose
23.3
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
17.9
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around 26554 (Marion County) rather than 26554 itself. They are shown and not scored. How to read death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. A ZIP area is not a jurisdiction, so no department reports for one. Fairmont carries the figure where its department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

2 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Arnold Palmer Rgnl at 67 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year92.7%Top 32%of 32,6632024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle67 miBottom 6%of 3,127NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle2Bottom 9%of 3,127NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year5.2%Top 34%of 32,6632024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Arnold Palmer RgnlLBE67 mi8,222 ft
Pittsburgh IntlPIT71 mi11,500 ft
Akron-Canton RgnlCAK122 mi8,204 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
55
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 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 every source with how often each updates.

26554 vs Fairmont

How this ZIP area compares with Fairmont as a whole. Both figures come from the same ACS release, so the comparison is like for like — a gap here is a real difference between the two places, not two surveys disagreeing.

26554
Fairmont
Median household income: 26554 is the more favorable of the two.
Median household income
$69,712
vs
$63,032
Per capita income: 26554 is the more favorable of the two.
Per capita income
$37,402
vs
$34,306
Population density
319/sq mi
vs
2,118/sq mi
Median home value
$183,900
vs
$163,800
Median gross rent: Fairmont is the more favorable of the two.
Median gross rent
$978
vs
$916
Homeownership rate
73.2%
vs
63.1%
Bachelor's degree or higher: Fairmont is the more favorable of the two.
Bachelor's degree or higher
31.9%
vs
32.9%
Poverty rate: 26554 is the more favorable of the two.
Poverty rate
13.3%
vs
16.8%
Median age
38.6
vs
34.9

Some demographic statistics use Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, which approximate but do not exactly match USPS ZIP delivery geography. See the methodology for how AreaProfile maps between them.