Amherst is a city of 1,865 people in Virginia. At a median age of 50.3, this is an older place than the country as a whole. 1% of locals were born outside the United States. 26% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Renters pay $718 a month at the median. Home values have more than doubled since 2000, reaching $220,700.
At a glance
Lower income
median household income $70,841, below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 50.3
US median: 38.9
Less educated
26% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
Stable housing
home values roughly flat, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Unique to this place
What stands out about Amherst
What changed most since 1990
White share70.9% → 81.9%(+11.0 pts)US over the same years: −17.8 pts
Black share27.7% → 13.8%(−13.9 pts)US over the same years: +0.2 pts
Adults with a bachelor's degree19.3% → 25.7%(+6.4 pts)US over the same years: +15.3 pts
Amherst's population equals 5.9% of Amherst County's. Its number of foreign-born residents equals 2.0% of the county's. Its number of households without a car equals 15% of the county's.
Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.
Section 09 · Service history
Veterans
Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)42.2%(54)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)2.3%(3)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era23.4%(30)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War13.3%(17)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0%(0)
US avg: 1%
Share of the 128 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Over time
Amherst, decade by decade
Amherst population, inflation-adjusted income and home value, education, and diversity by year
Year
Population
Median household income
Median home value
Bachelor's degree+
Diversity score
1990
1,060
$58,502
$151,924
19.3%
52.5
2000
2,251
$60,115
$182,712
19.4%
55.9
2010
2,231
$39,929
$240,529
15.1%
57.5
2020
2,110
$72,136
$218,894
28.9%
62.1
2024
1,865
$70,841
$220,700
25.7%
38.6
Census years come from the decennial census and the latest year from the American Community Survey, so part of any change between those two rows can reflect the different surveys. Dollar figures are adjusted for inflation to 2024 dollars; a figure ending in "+" was at the Census Bureau's reporting cap that year. The diversity score runs from 0 to 100; see how it's calculated.
