The Charleston Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in West Virginia, anchored by the city of Charleston. It is the largest metropolitan area entirely within the state of West Virginia. The Huntington Metro Area adds to the Charleston–Huntington, WV-OH-KY CSA and spans three states (West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio), while the core county of the Charleston area, Kanawha County, is more populous than the West Virginia portion of the Huntington area.
Charleston is the largest and most populous city in the MSA. Cross Lanes is its most populous census-designated place. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 309,635 (though new standards set on February 28, 2013, placed the population at 240,000). Prior to the 2000 Census, the Charleston MSA consisted of only two counties – Kanawha and Putnam (the latter of which is now considered part of the Huntington metropolitan area).
Rankings The population of the Charleston MSA is ranked 151st out of the 363 MSA's. The Charleston–Huntington, WV-OH-KY CSA is the 81st largest in the US. The Charleston-Huntington TV Market is ranked 64th out of 210. The Charleston MSA is ranked 181st out of the 297 Arbitron radio markets. Out of 280 Metropolitan statistical areas ranked by per capita income, the Charleston MSA is ranked 106th. (Census 2000) The MSA is 202 out of 280 ranked by median household income. (Census 2000)
Counties CountySeat2025 estimate2020 censusChangeAreaDensityKanawhaCharleston BooneMadison ClayClay Total
Cities, towns, and other communities
Places with more than 45,000 inhabitants Charleston (Principal City)
Places with 5,000 to 15,000 inhabitants Cross Lanes (census-designated place) Dunbar Nitro (partial) South Charleston St. Albans
Places with 1,000 to 5,000 inhabitants Alum Creek (census-designated place) Belle Chesapeake Clendenin Coal Fork (census-designated place) Culloden (census-designated place; partial) Elkview (census-designated place) Madison Marmet Montgomery (partial) Pinch (census-designated place) Sissonville (census-designated place) Upper Falls (census-designated place)
Places with less than 1,000 inhabitants Cedar Grove Clay Danville East Bank Glasgow Handley Jefferson Pratt Smithers (partial) Sylvester Whitesville
Unincorporated places
Adonijah Ashford Bandytown Barrett Big Chimney Bim Bob White Bream Crede Dille Elk Forest Emmons Floe Foch Hillsdale Independence Institute
Julian Little Italy Mink Shoals Nellis O'Brion Porter Racine Rand Swandale Uneeda Valley Fork Van Washington Heights Wharton Whetstone Widen
Demographics As of the census of 2000, there were 309,635 people, 129,229 households, and 88,175 families residing within the MSA. New definitions from February 28, 2013, placed the population at 363,000. The racial makeup of the MSA was 93.25% White, 4.66% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.65% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.17% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 0.55% of the population.
The median income for a household in the MSA was $29,222, and the median income for a family was $35,735. Males had a median income of $34,105 versus $20,448 for females. The per capita income for the MSA was $16,074.
Highways
Interstates
Interstate 77 Interstate 79 Interstate 64
U.S. Highways
U.S. Route 60 U.S. Route 119 U.S. Route 35
Appalachian Corridors Corridor G
WV state highways West Virginia Route 61 West Virginia Route 622 West Virginia Route 94 West Virginia Route 4 West Virginia Route 62 West Virginia Route 16 West Virginia Route 34 West Virginia Route 3 West Virginia Route 25West Virginia Route 10 West Virginia Route 36 West Virginia Route 114 West Virginia Route 601 West Virginia Route 214 West Virginia Route 501 West Virginia Route 869 West Virginia Route 817
Colleges and universities University of Charleston West Virginia State University Marshall University Graduate College BridgeValley Community and Technical College WV Junior College
Combined Statistical Area The Charleston–Huntington–Ashland, WV-OH-KY Combined Statistical Area consists of the Charleston, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area, the Huntington–Ashland, WV-KY-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area, and the Portsmouth, OH Micropolitan Statistical Area. It spans 12 counties in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio. +CBSA2023 Population (est.)County2023 Population (est.)2020 Population2010 Population2000 Population1950 Population1900 PopulationHuntington–Ashland, WV–KY–OH MSA368,261Cabell County, West Virginia92,08294,35096,31996,784108,03529,252Putnam County, West Virginia56,96257,44055,48651,58921,02117,330Lawrence County, Ohio56,11858,24062,45062,31949,11539,354Boyd County, Kentucky47,82648,26149,54249,75249,94918,834Wayne County, West Virginia37,68638,98242,48142,90338,69623,619Greenup County, Kentucky35,22135,96236,91036,89124,88715,432Carter County, Kentucky26,36626,62727,72026,88922,55920,228Lawrence County, Kentucky16,00016,29315,86015,56914,41819,612Charleston, WV MSA203,164Kanawha County, West Virginia174,805180,745193,063200,073239,62954,696Boone County, West Virginia20,57621,80924,62925,53533,1738,194Clay County, West Virginia7,7838,0519,38610,33014,9618,248Portsmouth, OH μSA71,969Scioto County, Ohio71,96974,00879,49979,19582,91040,981Charleston–Huntington–Ashland, WV–OH–KY CSA643,394
References
External links The Charleston Area Alliance List of Micropolitan and Metropolitan areas defined by the U.S. Census Bureau