City profile · West Virginia · Census ACS 2023

Lesage, WV

Lesage's Census ACS profile: residents, income, housing, and the joined public-record layers available for this place.

1,165
Residents
$38,944
Median income
$945
Median rent (state)
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Side-by-side metrics and state or size-class ranks use the same Census and FBI fields shown on this profile. Results stay in the URL so you can bookmark or share them.

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See how it ranks

State rank, size-class rank, and four peer cities for Lesage.

Place dossier plate

Sheet WV-LESAGE-WV · Lesage, WV 1,165 pop · income 7th pct

POP-VILLAGE · INC-LOW · COL-BELOW · SAFE-UNK · RANK-BOTTOM · PHOTO-FINISH · HOME-UNK · BOOK-UNK

  • POP-VILLAGE 1,165
  • INC-LOW $38,944
  • COL-BELOW 89.5
  • SAFE-UNK Safety pending
  • RANK-BOTTOM 7th
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Appalachia
  • HOME-UNK Homes pending
  • BOOK-UNK Tracts pending

Nearest income peer: Appalachia, VA ( $2 income $)

Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.

Income neighbourhood around Lesage

Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Lesage on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.

median HH income

What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-08

Compare beyond this state

Nationwide peers by population, income

Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Lesage on ACS population and median household income . Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.

Similar population

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 1,165.

4 peers

Similar household income

Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS median household income. This city: $38,944. Population peers are excluded.

4 peers

Lesage - the verdict

Measured against every US city with at least 1,000 residents, Lesage lands in the 7th percentile for household income. Source: Census ACS.

7th
percentile, household income
5th
percentile, median rent
📝 How we sourced this

Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.

Data Snapshot: Lesage, WV

West Virginia's Lesage is a small town, with 1,165 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Lesage households earn a median of $38,944 annually, in the lower quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 29.5%. The median resident age is 35.1 years. 18.4% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 69.9% of working-age residents are in the labor force.

The city is served by 1 public schools according to NCES Common Core of Data.

Living costs in West Virginia run below the national norm: the state registers 89.5 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Well Below Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in this state is $945 per month. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts West Virginia's average monthly utility costs around $220 (state average). The average commute for Lesage workers runs 18.5 minutes, with 94.1% driving alone and 5.9% working from home. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.2 out of 100 (Low).

A decision-led reading path

Useful questions to ask of Lesage's data

How this reading path is ordered

This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from schools and households to work and mobility to comparison shortlist; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.

For Lesage, city-specific coverage includes matched public-school count, commute-mode shares. No matched row is reported here for FBI reported-crime rates, annual population history, local building permits, within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.

1. Schools and households

What does the education layer cover for Lesage?

The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.

The NCES join finds 1 public school within the city match. 18.4% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.

See how the family ranking is built →

Question 2

What does the journey to work look like in Lesage?

Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 94.1%. The reported mean trip to work is 18.5 minutes.

Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. The profile is strongly car-oriented, so a relocation comparison should put trip distance, vehicle access, and household fuel costs ahead of a citywide commute average. The same-state peer links offer a more relevant benchmark than a national label.

Compare commute patterns →

3. Comparison shortlist

Which cities make useful reference points for Lesage?

Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching.

Within West Virginia, the closest population matches are Benwood (1,173 residents, $39,474 income); Hamlin (1,173 residents, $56,583 income); Athens (1,156 residents, $62,292 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Seville, FL (1,165 residents); Island City, OR (1,165 residents); Osceola Mills, PA (1,165 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.

Open a side-by-side comparison →

Population

1,165 residents

Micro place (under 10k)

Median Household Income

$38,944 /yr

Lowest-decile income · poverty 29.5% (Highest-decile poverty)

Cost of Living Index (state)

89.5 (US=100)

Affordable · BEA RPP 2024, West Virginia average

City profile score · Lesage, WV

29/100

4 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023

Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians (income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.

Cost of living A
89.5 index

BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.

Bachelor's+ share F
18.4%

Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.

Household income F
$38,944

Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.

Poverty rate F
29.5%

Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.

Violent crime N/A
N/A

No FBI UCR violent-crime rate for this place (coverage is incomplete).

Lesage profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions) 4-axis radar comparing 1 series across Cost of living, Bachelor's+ share, Household income, Poverty rate. Cost of livingBachelor's+ shareHousehold incomePoverty rate 29 F
Lesage profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)
Read the chart values
  • Cost of living: 87/100 (A) · 89.5 index
  • Bachelor's+ share: 30/100 (F) · 18.4%
  • Household income: 5/100 (F) · $38,944
  • Poverty rate: 0/100 (F) · 29.5%

How does Lesage compare to other US cities?

Here's how Lesage stacks up against the full field of US cities (population 1,000+), computed live from Census and FBI data.

Household income 7% higher than other cities
Median rent 5% pricier than other cities

"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.

How we calculate these percentiles & ranks

Each percentile compares Lesage against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to West Virginia only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.

West Virginia-relative analysis

Median Gross Rent places Lesage near the bottom of West Virginia's cities

Among the 390 West Virginia cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Lesage ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Lesage only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.

Median Household Income
#256 of 330
22nd percentile in West Virginia
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 390
0th percentile in West Virginia
Poverty Rate
#57 of 389
85th percentile in West Virginia
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#146 of 390
63rd percentile in West Virginia
How in-state ranks are ordered

Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within West Virginia only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.

7thIncome percentile
Gauge source note

7th percentile nationally for median household income. Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.

Income distribution context

$38,944 Lesage, WV median household income (Census ACS)

Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Household income distribution - Lesage, WV Lesage, WV's median household income ($38,944) against the U.S. national quintile-share pattern. The Lorenz curve and quintile bars are national context, not Lesage, WV-specific shares. $ Household Income Distribution Lesage, WV median $38,944/yr, vs. U.S. national quintile pattern QUINTILE SHARE OF AGGREGATE INCOME Lowest 20% 3.4% Second 20% 9.2% Middle 20% 15.1% Fourth 20% 23.2% Top 20% 49.1% LORENZ CURVE cumulative income vs. population 100% 0% 100% pop. 0%
Lesage, WV median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Lesage, WV.

Key socioeconomic indicators

Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+) 18.4%

Census ACS S1501, educational attainment

Poverty rate (households below FPL) 29.5%

Census ACS S1701, poverty status

Labor force participation (adults 16+) 69.9%

Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force

Population
1,165
Median Income
$38,944
Median Home Value
N/A
Median Age
35.1
Poverty Rate
29.5%
Labor force participation
69.9%
Bachelor's Degree+
18.4%

Schools

Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city

Commute Patterns

Commute source

How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023

Average Commute Time
18.5 minutes
Drive Alone
94.1%
Carpool
0.0%
Public Transit
0.0%
Walk
0.0%
Work from Home
5.9%

Based on 642 workers 16 and over.

Monthly Utility Costs

West Virginia statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $220

EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across West Virginia at $220 (electricity about $110 , water and sewer about $38 ).

These are West Virginia statewide averages, not a meter reading for Lesage. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.

Living Costs & Risk

West Virginia's BEA cost-of-living index is 89.5 (Well Below Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Lesage is $945/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to West Virginia statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 49.2 / 100 (Low).

Cost/risk geography note

Cost of living is a West Virginia statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Lesage sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.

How Lesage compares to similar-size West Virginia cities

Same-state peer method

Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.

City Population Median Household Income
Lesage (this city) 1,165 $38,944
Benwood 1,173 $39,474
Hamlin 1,173 $56,583
Athens 1,156 $62,292
NCES CCD
Primary sources on this page

Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, NCES CCD, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Citation & verification links Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCities

Primary sources: Census ACS, FBI UCR, NOAA Climate Normals, NCES. Joins use OMB Bulletin 23-01 / FIPS keys.

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Estimate caveats

ACS and UCR figures are citywide estimates with vintage lags; they do not replace a local visit, school visit, or insurance quote.

Editorial standards, provenance, and how to cite this page

Every figure on PlainCities is rendered directly from Census ACS source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on Census ACS source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

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