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Towns / West Virginia

Logan, West Virginia

Logan is a small town of about 1,300 people in Logan County, West Virginia. It's the county seat. It has lost about 8% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.8 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Columbus, is about 157 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
1,312
down 8.3% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$84,700
Logan County prices up 11% since 2022
Household income
$29,832
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural West Virginia
87
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Logan Regional Medical Center
To Columbus
157 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 13% below the U.S. average in the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.8 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Logan itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town4 public schools: 2 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byLogan Regional Medical Center is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityColumbus is about 157 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Logan meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

Worth a closer look

Logan has lost about 8% of its people since 2020, and about 1 in 6 homes stands empty (not counting vacation homes or homes for sale or rent). A shrinking town can mean bargains, but visit Main Street on a weekday and ask what's closed lately.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$84,700U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 11%Logan County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$778 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$29,832U.S.: $80,734
Typical property tax bill
$732 a yearWest Virginia: $865
Homes built since 2010
22%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
87U.S. average = 100 (the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 11% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas, not Logan alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,3122020: 1,431
Median age
34.3 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
14%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
16%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
9%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
11%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (25%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (18%)
Work from home
5%U.S.: 15%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Logan Regional Medical Center, Logan, WV, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

4 public schools in Logan, run by Logan County Schools.

Colleges in or next to town: Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College (1,000 to 4,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on West Virginia's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
74%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
82%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
27°F
July average high
89°F
Days 90°F or hotter
46 a year
Nights at or below freezing
83 a year
Rain and melted snow
50.8 inches a year
Snow
15 inches a year
Elevation
976 feet

Weather stations: Logan (1 mile away) and Man (9 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Kingsport, Columbus.

Logan County is outside any metro area, with 5,000 to 20,000 people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 6, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • New River Gorge National Park and Preserve46 miles
  • Gauley River National Recreation Area54 miles
  • Bluestone National Scenic River57 miles

Read about Logan's history on Wikipedia.

Know Logan?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • West Logan, WV369 people, 1 mile
  • Stollings, WV (unincorporated)505 people, 2 miles
  • Mount Gay-Shamrock, WV (unincorporated)1,166 people, 2 miles
  • McConnell, WV (unincorporated)818 people, 2 miles
  • Crooked Creek, WV (unincorporated)517 people, 2 miles
  • Monaville, WV (unincorporated)502 people, 3 miles
  • Justice Addition, WV (unincorporated)118 people, 3 miles
  • Rossmore, WV (unincorporated)152 people, 3 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.