| ZIP Codes: | 36 ZIP Codes (18 Standard, 18 PO Box, 0 Unique) [See All] |
| Area Codes: | 304 / 681 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (GMT -05:00) |
| Local Time: | 11:55:43 PM |
| Population: | 18,311 [See All] |
| FIPS: | 54047 |
| Land Area: | 596 sq mi |
| Water Area: | 2 sq mi |
| Coordinates: | 37.3811, -81.6285 |
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18,311 residents live across 36 ZIPs covering 596 sq mi, served by 36 distinct USPS-recognized cities.
Population moved from 21,587 to 18,268 from 2014 to 2024 — a -15.4% change. 13 ZIPs gained residents, 20 lost.
The county's wealthiest ZIP 24871 (Pageton, $64,167 median) and poorest ZIP 24846 (Isaban, $2,499) are 26.0 miles apart — a 25.7× income gap across local geography.
Median home values vary 7.7× across this county — from $24,000 in 24815 (Berwind) to $183,900 in 24873 (Paynesville).
Density varies 7332× across the county — from 8 people/sq mi in 24815 (Berwind) to 55,014 in 24817 (Bradshaw).
Educational attainment ranges from 0.9% bachelor's+ in 24828 (Davy) to 57.8% in 24830 (Elbert) — the breadth of educational profiles across the area.
Within West Virginia, this is the #32 most populous of 55 counties and ranks #55 for median household income .
Weighted by population, the typical household earns about $31,413 across the county — reflecting what a typical resident sees, not a simple ZIP average.
6.7% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher (922 of 13,683 reporting).
18 Standard delivery, 18 PO Box only, 0 single-entity Unique ZIPs serve this county.
Median household income spans 25.7× between the wealthiest and poorest ZIPs — a sign of significant intra-county inequality.
A frontier county — vast land area with only a few residents per square mile. Daily life looks very different here than in the country's denser counties.
Mcdowell County lost 15.2% of residents between 2014 and 2024. ZIPs that shed the largest share:
| ZIP | City | Type | Population | Median Income | Area (sq mi) | 10-yr Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24801 | Welch | Standard | 4,745 | $29,330 | 99.6 | 1.4% |
| 24817 | Bradshaw | PO Box | 1,931 | $25,363 | 0.0 | 151.8% |
| 24892 | War | Standard | 1,193 | $36,707 | 43.5 | -16.6% |
| 24844 | Iaeger | Standard | 1,049 | $25,756 | 69.6 | -49.6% |
| 24868 | Northfork | Standard | 999 | $30,259 | 54.8 | -25.7% |
| 24836 | Gary | PO Box | 914 | $36,250 | 0.0 | 60.1% |
| 24862 | Mohawk | Standard | 749 | $30,389 | 12.5 | 48.9% |
| 24866 | Newhall | PO Box | 729 | $38,852 | 5.9 | 361.4% |
| 24871 | Pageton | PO Box | 667 | $64,167 | 6.3 | 185.0% |
| 24808 | Anawalt | Standard | 501 | — | 21.9 | -22.9% |
| 24872 | Panther | Standard | 477 | $40,293 | 42.9 | -45.4% |
| 24853 | Kimball | PO Box | 458 | $13,092 | 12.5 | -22.2% |
| 24828 | Davy | Standard | 429 | $17,424 | 28.2 | -47.7% |
| 24894 | Warriormine | PO Box | 409 | $24,423 | 2.2 | 26.2% |
| 24813 | Bartley | PO Box | 400 | — | 0.0 | 14.9% |
| 24831 | Elkhorn | Standard | 393 | $57,652 | 1.7 | 158.6% |
| 24811 | Avondale | PO Box | 295 | — | 5.3 | -51.4% |
| 24878 | Premier | PO Box | 279 | $33,113 | 3.1 | -38.4% |
| 24846 | Isaban | Standard | 266 | $2,499 | 10.1 | 61.2% |
| 24873 | Paynesville | Standard | 247 | — | 11.3 | -36.3% |
| 24879 | Raysal | Standard | 180 | — | 14.6 | -75.4% |
| 24815 | Berwind | Standard | 176 | — | 23.5 | -81.5% |
| 24830 | Elbert | Standard | 125 | $42,037 | 14.2 | 45.3% |
| 24816 | Big Sandy | PO Box | 113 | — | 1.3 | 3.7% |
| 24848 | Jenkinjones | PO Box | 112 | $27,065 | 3.5 | -36.0% |
| 24888 | Thorpe | PO Box | 90 | $36,813 | 0.1 | -58.5% |
| 24861 | Maybeury | PO Box | 90 | — | 0.1 | -74.1% |
| 24826 | Cucumber | PO Box | 87 | — | 4.5 | 93.3% |
| 24881 | Roderfield | PO Box | 82 | — | 4.8 | -82.1% |
| 24884 | Squire | Standard | 54 | — | 59.0 | -86.0% |
| 24855 | Kyle | Standard | 39 | — | 0.2 | — |
| 24850 | Jolo | Standard | 29 | — | 31.9 | -96.5% |
| 24895 | Wilcoe | PO Box | 4 | — | 0.0 | — |
| 24887 | Switchback | PO Box | 0 | — | 1.1 | -100.0% |
| 24843 | Hensley | PO Box | 0 | — | 2.8 | -100.0% |
| 24829 | Eckman | Standard | — | — | 3.0 | — |