Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 48/100
D+
Median home value$735,100
Washington $579,900
Median rent$2,089/mo
Washington $2,027/mo
Cost-burdened households35%
Washington 31%
Alexandria
Alexandria County156,976 residentsAlexandria City Public Schools
64
C+
Suburbgrade score
29th of 60 Washington suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by housing & affordability.
64
Washington median 64
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Alexandria yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 64 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Alexandria is like to live in, by category
Bars show Alexandria against Washington. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 50/100
D+
Within-state proficiency—
Washington median 78th pct
Student–teacher ratio15.1
Washington median 14.1
Graduation rate75%
Washington median 86%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 72/100
B−
Housing cost index108
Washington 100
Eff. tax rate0.92%
Washington 0.85%
Local sales tax5.77%
Washington median 5.77%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 65/100
C+
Mean commute28.4 min
Washington 32.4 min
Under 30 minutes54%
Washington 47%
Transit stops / sq mi42
Washington median 6.4 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 95/100
A+
Restaurants & cafés227
Washington median 87 · within 2 miles
Groceries15
Washington median 8 · within 2 miles
Parks244
Washington median 85 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 72/100
B−
Median household income$119,681
Washington $126,684
Unemployment3.3%
Washington 4.8%
Professional occupations63%
Washington 58%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
—
No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Alexandria yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
—
Do you feel safe walking after dark?
—
Can you walk to a grocery store?
—
Is it good for young children?
—
Are yards and streets well kept?
—
Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Alexandria on housing & affordability
Alexandria's weakest grade is D+. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
McLean10 mi from AlexandriaA 72 B− Potomac15 mi from AlexandriaB+ 67 C+ Burke10 mi from AlexandriaB 67 C+ South Riding24 mi from AlexandriaB 68 B− Bethesda12 mi from AlexandriaB− 73 B North Potomac21 mi from AlexandriaB− 68 B− Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Alexandria
Is Alexandria, VA a good place to live?
Alexandria scores 64 out of 100, 29th of 60 Washington suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Alexandria expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $735,100, 27% above the Washington median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.92%. $2,089/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Alexandria?
Schools grade D+. The districts serving Alexandria sit at the — within-state proficiency percentile, with a 75% graduation rate and a 15.1 student–teacher ratio. Alexandria is served by Alexandria City Public Schools. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Alexandria?
The mean commute is 28.4 min, with 54% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 29% working from home. Transit density is 42 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Alexandria?
Within two miles there are 15 groceries, 227 restaurants and cafés and 244 parks, which grades A+ on amenities.
Are the homes in Alexandria old or new?
The median home in Alexandria was built in 1974 — older than the Washington median of 1983. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 35% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.