Largest Cities in Virginia
The population landscape of Virginia is dominated by the Hampton Roads metropolitan area and the Northern Virginia (NoVA) suburbs of Washington, D.C. A unique quirk of Virginia geography is that it has many “Independent Cities” which operate separately from counties, making their boundaries and population counts very distinct.
The following table lists the 10 largest cities in Virginia, ranked by population.
| Rank | City Name | Population (Est.) | Region | Key Feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virginia Beach | 453,000 | Hampton Roads | Largest resort city on the East Coast |
| 2 | Chesapeake | 252,000 | Hampton Roads | Massive land area with significant wetlands |
| 3 | Norfolk | 235,000 | Hampton Roads | Home to the world’s largest naval base |
| 4 | Arlington* | 234,000 | Northern Virginia | Technically a county, but functions as a city |
| 5 | Richmond | 229,000 | Central Virginia | State Capital and historic James River hub |
| 6 | Newport News | 184,000 | Hampton Roads | Major shipbuilding and maritime center |
| 7 | Alexandria | 155,000 | Northern Virginia | Historic port town on the Potomac |
| 8 | Hampton | 136,000 | Hampton Roads | Site of NASA Langley Research Center |
| 9 | Roanoke | 99,000 | Blue Ridge | The “Star City of the South” |
| 10 | Portsmouth | 97,000 | Hampton Roads | Historic naval shipyard district |