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Towns / West Virginia

Welch, West Virginia

Welch is a small town of about 3,400 people in McDowell County, West Virginia. It's the county seat. It has lost about 6% of its people since 2020. A typical home costs about 1.7 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, Charlotte, is about 159 miles away as the crow flies.

County seat

Population
3,389
down 5.8% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$57,300
U.S.: $332,700
Household income
$32,969
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, rural West Virginia
87
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
In town
Welch Community Hospital
To Charlotte
159 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 1.7 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 Welch 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 town2 public schools: 1 elementary and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byWelch Community Hospital is in town and has an emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityCharlotte is about 159 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 Welch 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

Welch has lost about 6% of its people since 2020, and about 1 in 5 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
$57,300U.S.: $332,700
Typical household income
$32,969U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
75%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$430 a yearWest Virginia: $865
Homes built before 1940
29%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
3%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
4%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. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of West Virginia outside metro areas, not Welch 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
3,3892020: 3,597
Median age
40.6 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
11%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
8%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
5%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
20%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
Retail (16%)
Unemployment rate
0%U.S.: 5%
Work from home
8%U.S.: 15%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Welch Community Hospital, Welch, WV, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare hasn't given it a star rating.

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

2 public schools in Welch, run by McDowell County Schools.

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
58%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
78%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
23°F
July average high
83°F
Days 90°F or hotter
5 a year
Nights at or below freezing
120 a year
Rain and melted snow
48.5 inches a year
Snow
20 inches a year
Elevation
1,752 feet

Weather stations: Elkhorn (11 miles away) and Pineville (11 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, Charlotte.

McDowell County is outside any metro area, with fewer than 5,000 people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 9, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Welch Commercial Historic District and Welch Commercial Historic District (Boundary Increase).

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Appalachian National Scenic Trail27 miles
  • Bluestone National Scenic River32 miles
  • New River Gorge National Park and Preserve38 miles
  • Gauley River National Recreation Area59 miles

Read about Welch's history on Wikipedia.

Know Welch?

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

  • Kimball, WV243 people, 4 miles
  • Davy, WV182 people, 4 miles
  • Gary, WV681 people, 5 miles
  • Big Sandy, WV (unincorporated)113 people, 7 miles
  • Keystone, WV151 people, 8 miles
  • Northfork, WV202 people, 9 miles
  • War, WV536 people, 9 miles
  • Bartley, WV (unincorporated)327 people, 10 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.