| ZIP Codes: | 79 ZIP Codes (35 Standard, 41 PO Box, 3 Unique) [See All] |
| Area Codes: | 304 / 681 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (GMT -05:00) |
| Local Time: | 12:01:58 PM |
| Population: | 181,671 [See All] |
| FIPS: | 54039 |
| CBSA: | Charleston, WV |
| Land Area: | 968 sq mi |
| Water Area: | 10 sq mi |
| Coordinates: | 38.3208, -81.5794 |
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181,671 residents live across 79 ZIPs covering 968 sq mi, served by 34 distinct USPS-recognized cities.
Population moved from 195,914 to 176,963 from 2014 to 2024 — a -9.7% change. 16 ZIPs gained residents, 26 lost (and 1 held flat).
The county's wealthiest ZIP 25202 (Tornado, $96,328 median) and poorest ZIP 25301 (Charleston, $25,417) are 12.3 miles apart — a 3.8× income gap across local geography.
Median home values vary 2.9× across this county — from $90,200 in 25315 (Charleston) to $265,900 in 25314 (Charleston).
Density varies 53× across the county — from 33 people/sq mi in 25045 (Clendenin) to 1,790 in 25301 (Charleston).
Educational attainment ranges from 12.8% bachelor's+ in 25320 (Charleston) to 63.2% in 25314 (Charleston) — the breadth of educational profiles across the area.
Within West Virginia, this is the #1 most populous of 55 counties and ranks #17 for median household income .
Hosts 3 single-entity Unique ZIPs: 25396Charleston ; 25392United Bank ; and 25317Wv Dept Of Motor Veh .
Weighted by population, the typical household earns about $62,808 across the county — reflecting what a typical resident sees, not a simple ZIP average.
29.2% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher (38,390 of 131,397 reporting). The most-educated ZIPs cluster around Charleston.
35 Standard delivery, 41 PO Box only, 3 single-entity Unique ZIPs serve this county.
1 ZIP in this county where more than 60% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor's degree — typically college campuses, research enclaves, or tech corridors.
3 ZIP codes in this county serve a single facility — typically theme parks, universities, large corporations, airports, or government complexes.
Median household income spans 3.8× between the wealthiest and poorest ZIPs — a sign of significant intra-county inequality.
Kanawha County lost 7.3% of residents between 2014 and 2024. ZIPs that shed the largest share:
| ZIP | City | Type | Population | Median Income | Area (sq mi) | 10-yr Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25177 | Saint Albans | Standard | 22,665 | $55,046 | 33.4 | -7.9% |
| 25314 | Charleston | Standard | 14,794 | $94,556 | 32.0 | -10.4% |
| 25302 | Charleston | Standard | 13,204 | $55,210 | 12.6 | -12.0% |
| 25309 | South Charleston | Standard | 12,154 | $57,937 | 30.6 | -7.6% |
| 25313 | Charleston | Standard | 11,760 | $64,385 | 20.5 | -13.4% |
| 25071 | Elkview | Standard | 11,107 | $59,710 | 111.9 | -5.3% |
| 25312 | Charleston | Standard | 10,047 | $57,246 | 71.0 | -31.3% |
| 25311 | Charleston | Standard | 9,825 | $62,800 | 26.6 | -2.3% |
| 25064 | Dunbar | Standard | 9,090 | $57,263 | 6.1 | -5.2% |
| 25143 | Nitro | Standard | 8,714 | $53,205 | 10.2 | 5.0% |
| 25304 | Charleston | Standard | 8,655 | $80,931 | 11.1 | -3.0% |
| 25303 | South Charleston | Standard | 7,396 | $75,872 | 4.3 | 3.0% |
| 25306 | Charleston | Standard | 6,040 | $71,654 | 39.9 | -5.0% |
| 25387 | Charleston | Standard | 4,708 | $43,063 | 5.9 | — |
| 25320 | Charleston | Standard | 4,595 | $58,629 | 60.4 | -31.4% |
| 25045 | Clendenin | Standard | 4,234 | $52,025 | 126.4 | -19.6% |
| 25015 | Belle | Standard | 3,888 | $56,681 | 37.1 | -15.3% |
| 25315 | Charleston | Standard | 3,286 | $55,083 | 17.6 | -1.8% |
| 25301 | Charleston | Standard | 2,498 | $25,417 | 1.4 | 15.4% |
| 25003 | Alum Creek | Standard | 1,975 | $64,631 | 39.7 | -24.2% |
| 25202 | Tornado | Standard | 1,451 | $96,328 | 13.2 | 11.6% |
| 25214 | Winifrede | Standard | 994 | $70,956 | 9.4 | 46.0% |
| 25086 | Glasgow | PO Box | 907 | $54,032 | 1.3 | 19.2% |
| 25067 | East Bank | Standard | 850 | $72,875 | 0.6 | -12.8% |
| 25035 | Cabin Creek | Standard | 719 | $33,995 | 11.0 | -38.4% |
| 25075 | Eskdale | Standard | 660 | $68,083 | 72.8 | 20.2% |
| 25039 | Cedar Grove | Standard | 629 | $45,417 | 21.4 | -49.8% |
| 25134 | Miami | PO Box | 548 | $150,366 | 0.0 | 14.6% |
| 25160 | Pond Gap | Standard | 510 | $44,066 | 44.1 | 146.4% |
| 25132 | Mammoth | Standard | 501 | $47,250 | 7.2 | 8.4% |
| 25083 | Gallagher | Standard | 439 | $32,792 | 34.1 | -41.6% |
| 25162 | Pratt | PO Box | 438 | $63,558 | 0.1 | -16.7% |
| 25102 | Handley | PO Box | 418 | $105,150 | 1.2 | 47.2% |
| 25110 | Hugheston | PO Box | 366 | $56,037 | 7.3 | -35.6% |
| 25061 | Drybranch | PO Box | 363 | $55,962 | 0.1 | -20.2% |
| 25107 | Hernshaw | Standard | 306 | — | 10.8 | -22.7% |
| 25054 | Dawes | PO Box | 238 | $95,952 | 20.3 | -19.9% |
| 25112 | Institute | PO Box | 206 | — | 0.0 | 87.3% |
| 25103 | Hansford | Standard | 151 | $23,264 | 4.5 | 118.8% |
| 25156 | Pinch | PO Box | 119 | — | 0.0 | 14.4% |
| 25025 | Blount | Standard | 83 | — | 9.6 | -52.8% |
| 25126 | London | PO Box | 76 | — | 0.3 | 76.7% |
| 25201 | Tad | PO Box | 64 | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25305 | Charleston | Standard | 0 | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25396 | Charleston | Unique | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25392 | Charleston | Unique | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25350 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25321 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25329 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25331 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25324 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25328 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25322 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25334 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25330 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25338 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25325 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25326 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25335 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25327 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25336 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25323 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25333 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25337 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25361 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25339 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25332 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25365 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25317 | Charleston | Unique | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25375 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25389 | Charleston | Standard | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25362 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25357 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25364 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25358 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25356 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25026 | Blue Creek | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25079 | Falling Rock | Standard | — | — | 0.0 | — |
| 25360 | Charleston | PO Box | — | — | 0.0 | — |