What is the median rent in Portsmouth, VA?

Name: Median rent in Portsmouth, VA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Portsmouth, VA is $1,300 (±$26) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 16,405 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Portsmouth, the median gross rent went from $1,048 in 2015–2019 to $1,300 in 2020–2024 (+24.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,300 (±$26)
Rented homes: 16,405 (±741)
$2,000 or more: 9.0%
Since 2015–2019: +24.0%

How much rent costs in Portsmouth

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Portsmouth	Portsmouth city	Virginia	United States
Less than $500	7.1% (±1.6 points)	7.1%	5.0%	6.3%
$500 to $999	15.3% (±2.0 points)	15.3%	16.1%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	47.9% (±3.4 points)	47.9%	25.0%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	20.7% (±2.7 points)	20.7%	24.4%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	7.5% (±1.9 points)	7.5%	15.5%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	1.1% (±0.8 points)	1.1%	6.9%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	0.4% (±0.4 points)	0.4%	7.0%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,000 to $1,499, paid by 47.9% of renting households.

9.0% of rented homes in Portsmouth cost $2,000 or more a month.

Portsmouth against Portsmouth city, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Portsmouth	Portsmouth city	Virginia	United States
Median gross rent	$1,300 (±$26)	$1,300 (±$26)	$1,579 (±$8)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	16,405 (±741)	16,405 (±741)	1,045,770 (±8,216)	42,849,984

In Portsmouth, median gross rent is not measurably different from Portsmouth city ($1,300).

It is also lower than in Virginia ($1,579).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

Statewide, it ranks 200 of 428.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Portsmouth has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,048 (±$18)	$1,300 (±$26)	+24.0%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	45.0% (±1.4 points)	42.1% (±1.8 points)	−2.9 percentage points	Measurable decrease
Rental vacancy rate	6.8% (±1.4 points)	3.5% (±1.5 points)	−3.3 percentage points	Measurable decrease

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Portsmouth

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Portsmouth
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Portsmouth	—	$1,300 (±$26)	—
Norfolk	7.6 mi	$1,321 (±$27)	Not measurably different
Carrollton	11 mi	$1,789 (±$123)	Higher
Chesapeake	13 mi	$1,586 (±$39)	Higher
Hampton	13 mi	$1,427 (±$35)	Higher
Smithfield	16 mi	$1,195 (±$150)	Not measurably different
Bethel Manor	17 mi	$2,121 (±$60)	Higher
Newport News	18 mi	$1,339 (±$25)	Higher
Poquoson	19 mi	$1,707 (±$129)	Higher

Nearby places with a measurably higher figure: Carrollton, VA ($1,789), Chesapeake, VA ($1,586), Hampton, VA ($1,427).

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

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Questions about Portsmouth

What is the average rent in Portsmouth, VA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Portsmouth is $1,300 (±$26) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Portsmouth?

In Portsmouth, the median gross rent went from $1,048 in 2015–2019 to $1,300 in 2020–2024 (+24.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Portsmouth cost more than $2,000 a month?

9.0% of rented homes in Portsmouth have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 7.1% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Portsmouth higher than in Portsmouth city?

In Portsmouth, median gross rent is not measurably different from Portsmouth city ($1,300).

It is also lower than in Virginia ($1,579).

It is lower than the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Portsmouth city, Virginia (place:64000, in state:51).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.