Best PlacesJames City County, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in James City County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
James City County ranks 38th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on health care access by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in James City County
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
James City County's strengths and weaknesses
Where James City County ranks high
- Healthcare accessBetter than 99% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than 99% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than 98% of counties
- Crime safetyBetter than 97% of counties
Where James City County ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 15% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 19% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 20% of counties
- Cheap childcare$953 a month, better than only 21% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 23% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in James City County
A household needs to earn about $118,000 a year to comfortably buy the median James City County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $112,895; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses James City County's effective rate of 0.61%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in James City County
James City County runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for James City County.
Who works in James City County, and how
Work in James City County centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 76%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in James City County
James City County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties and less parkland per resident than most counties. The coast is about 22 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of James City County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is James City County growing, and who is moving in?
James City County has grown about 15% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the Virginia Beach, VA metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving James City County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in James City County, month by month
James City County sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 41° | 33° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 51° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 73° |
| October | 76° | 65° | 57° |
Flying in and out of James City County
The nearest airport, Newport News/Williamsburg International, is about 19 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Richmond International, about 34 miles away.
The best schools in and around James City County
Schools across James City County average an A, better than 96% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Waller Mill ElementaryA+ · 80% proficient
- Stonehouse ElementaryA+ · 74% proficient
- Matoaka ElementaryA+ · 73% proficient
Top middle schools
- Yorktown MiddleA+ · 73% proficient
- Queens Lake MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
- Lois Hornsby MiddleA · 65% proficient
Top high schools
- Jamestown HighA · 79% proficient
- New Kent HighA · 76% proficient
- Warhill HighA · 74% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every James City County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
James City County measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare James City County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who James City County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 99% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 17% already work from home.
Common questions about living in James City County
Is James City County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, James City County ranks 38th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on health care access, civic engagement, and what local pay buys, and lowest on state finances and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is James City County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $463,590. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $112,895 median income, cost of living beats 99% of counties.
Is James City County safe?
Yes, James City County is safer than 97% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $216 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in James City County?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 51 with lows near 33. That works out to about 70 pleasant days a year, more than 20% of counties.
Is James City County good for families?
Schools beat 96% of counties, crime safety beats 97%, and childcare runs $953 a month.
Compare James City County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to James City County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in James City County represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
James City County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for James City County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in James City County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of James City County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in James City County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
James City County detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.