Cost of hiring in the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area

Median pay by role in the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area

The employer pays more than the wage: benefits and payroll taxes other than paid leave are 22.5% of total compensation in US private industry², so a $37,380 median for customer support specialists, the largest of these jobs here, comes to about $48,232 a year. That is an estimate: benefit levels vary by employer.

the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area against the US

The Southwest Virginia nonmetro area pays below the US median for all 17 roles. The gap is smallest for medical administrative assistants (-5.0%) and payroll specialists (-5.9%) and largest for paralegals (-25.8%). The middle gap across all 17 is -14.8%: for most of these roles, hiring costs less here than at the US median. Its best national standing is for accountants, #227 of 521 areas by median pay; its lowest is for data entry specialists, #384 of 394.

Compared with the US mix of these jobs, the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area has more e-commerce order specialists (1.1% of these jobs here, against 0.5% nationally) and data entry specialists (1.5% against 0.8%), and fewer executive assistants (1.6% against 2.9%) and project coordinators (3.7% against 6.7%). Metro areas in other states with the closest overall pay level, measured the same way, are listed below; Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA is nearest, at -14.9%.

How far pay spreads inside each role

From the 10th to the 90th percentile, sales development representatives in the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area span $31,970–$116,450, the widest band (3.6×); HR assistants the narrowest, $37,330–$55,420. Offers cluster nearer the median than nationally for 11 of 17 roles, paralegals most ($44,740–$101,500 across the US). Budget from the median for sales development representatives, marketing specialists, recruiters and 2 more roles: a few well-paid jobs lift the average ($65,110 against a $51,950 median for sales development representatives).

the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area against Virginia

Against Virginia as a whole, the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area pays less for every one of the 17 roles with a statewide figure. It comes closest for virtual receptionists (-5.0%) and is furthest below for sales development representatives (-28.5%). It has the lowest median in Virginia for office managers, sales development representatives and paralegals and 1 more role.

Other areas in Virginia

By jobs in these roles, the Southwest Virginia nonmetro area is #5 of 13 areas in Virginia. The table shows the areas closest to it in size, from Richmond to the Northwest Virginia nonmetro area.

Questions

Sources

How these pages are built: methodology and data sources. Last updated 2026-11-12.