Property Tax in Alexandria city, Virginia
The median real estate tax bill in Alexandria city, Virginia is $6,879 per year, and the median home is worth $696,800. Both figures are the US Census Bureau's survey medians for owner-occupied households (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What the Alexandria city numbers mean
The median is the midpoint of the county's actual bills: half of Alexandria city homeowners pay more than $6,879 a year and half pay less. The exact bill for any one home depends on its assessed value, exemptions, and which school, municipal and special districts cover it.
Set against the median home value of $696,800, the median bill works out to a derived effective rate of 0.99%. That rate is an estimate computed from the two medians — no county publishes a rate calculated this way — but it adjusts for home prices, which makes comparisons between counties more meaningful.
The key figures for Alexandria city
| Measure | Alexandria city |
|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid per year | $6,879 |
| Median home value | $696,800 |
| Derived effective rate* | 0.99% |
| Equivalent monthly tax | $573 |
| Tax per $100,000 of value (derived) | $987 |
| Illustrative tax on a $400,000 home (derived rate) | $3,948 |
For context, the Virginia medians are $2,686 of tax on $360,700 of value, and the US medians are $2,969 on $303,400. *Derived figures are estimates from Census medians, not official rates.
Alexandria city at a glance
- Median tax rank in Virginia: #4 of 133 counties
- Median home value rank in Virginia: #5 of 133
- Population rank in Virginia: #13 of 133 (156,788 residents)
- Population density rank: #1 of 133 (10,498 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in Virginia: #112 of 133 (14 sq mi, 0.0% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $573; per $1,000 of home value: $0.99
How Alexandria city compares
Set against its state, Alexandria city's median bill of $6,879 is about 156% higher than the Virginia median ($2,686). Against the country as a whole it is about 132% higher than the US median ($2,969). That places the county #4 of 133 Virginia counties ranked by median taxes paid.
Remember what drives the ranking: bills follow home values as much as rates. Alexandria city's median home, at $696,800, ranks #5 by value in Virginia, while its derived rate of 0.99% compares with a derived US figure of 0.98%.
Some extra context for Alexandria city: the median bill works out to about $573 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $987 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 156,788 people — the #13 most populous county in Virginia, spread over 14 square miles, a density of about 10,498 people per square mile. Its median home value, $696,800, ranks #5 among the state's 133 counties with data.
Nationally, Alexandria city's median bill of $6,879 ranks #51 of 3133 counties with published data — inside the top 2% of counties by tax paid. The county accounts for about 1.8% of Virginia's population, its median home value is about 93% above the state median, and at the derived rate the median home would hand over roughly 9.87% of its value in tax across a decade. Within the state, the distance from Alexandria city to the most expensive county, Falls Church city ($10,001), is $3,122 a year.
Counties nearest Alexandria city in the Virginia ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arlington County, VA | $7,774 | $864,800 | 0.90% |
| Fairfax County, VA | $7,072 | $699,700 | 1.01% |
| Fairfax city, VA | $6,392 | $677,400 | 0.94% |
| Loudoun County, VA | $6,186 | $701,000 | 0.88% |
Alexandria city and its population peers
For a like-for-like sense of scale, compare Alexandria city with its national population peers: the counties nearest to its 156,788 residents, listed in the table below with their own Census medians. Of the 9 counties in that group, Alexandria city's median bill of $6,879 is the highest.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rankin County, MS | 158,218 | $1,384 | $223,400 | 0.62% |
| Parker County, TX | 158,079 | $4,978 | $343,600 | 1.45% |
| Centre County, PA | 158,041 | $3,282 | $308,100 | 1.06% |
| Mesa County, CO | 157,316 | $1,357 | $349,400 | 0.39% |
| Franklin County, PA | 156,626 | $2,634 | $236,300 | 1.11% |
| Hampshire County, MA | 156,595 | $5,326 | $363,400 | 1.47% |
| Bibb County, GA | 156,543 | $1,826 | $165,800 | 1.10% |
| Santa Fe County, NM | 155,175 | $2,110 | $416,900 | 0.51% |
The closest population match is Franklin County, Pennsylvania (156,626 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $2,634 on a median home value of $236,300 — $4,245 more than Alexandria city pays.
Staying within Virginia, the counties nearest Alexandria city by population are Newport News city (184,774 residents, median tax $2,507 on a median value of $243,300); Stafford County (160,520 residents, median tax $3,301 on a median value of $458,800); Spotsylvania County (143,876 residents, median tax $2,263 on a median value of $375,000); Hampton city (137,334 residents, median tax $2,259 on a median value of $234,100). The spread in their median bills — all under the same state framework — shows how much of the property tax burden is decided county by county and district by district.
How the tax is worked out
Think of the final bill as three ingredients: the assessed value of the property, the exemptions subtracted from it, and the combined rate of every district the property sits in. Alexandria city's medians imply a derived rate of 0.99%; applied illustratively, a $400,000 home would owe about $3,948 a year, or around $329 a month spread evenly. Individual properties depart from the illustration in both directions.
Illustrative bills in Alexandria city at the derived rate
The derived rate of 0.99% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Alexandria city — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 0.74% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $1,480 | $123 |
| $250,000 | $2,468 | $206 |
| $350,000 | $3,454 | $288 |
| $500,000 | $4,935 | $411 |
| $750,000 | $7,402 | $617 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in Alexandria city
Believe your assessment is too high? The practical order of attack is: obtain your record card and audit it line by line; collect comparable recent sales in Alexandria city; ask the assessor's office to correct anything plainly wrong; and, if the value still seems off, lodge a formal appeal ahead of the deadline printed on your assessment notice. Windows are short — often 30 to 90 days — and late appeals are usually rejected outright, however strong the case.
More Virginia counties
Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Alexandria city, Virginia?
The median real estate tax paid in Alexandria city, Virginia is $6,879 per year, on a median home value of $696,800 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Alexandria city, Virginia?
On a derived basis, 0.99%: the county's median tax bill of $6,879 divided by its median home value of $696,800. Because it is calculated from two survey medians, read it as a comparison estimate rather than an official rate.
How does Alexandria city compare with the rest of Virginia?
Alexandria city ranks #4 of 133 Virginia counties with published data by median taxes paid. Its median bill of $6,879 is about 156% higher than the Virginia median of $2,686.
How are property taxes calculated in Alexandria city, Virginia?
Three steps produce the bill: an assessment of market value by the local assessor, a reduction for exemptions you qualify for (a homestead exemption is the common one), and multiplication by the combined rates of the county, municipality, school district and any special districts covering the property. The median result in Alexandria city is $6,879 of tax on a $696,800 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Alexandria city, Virginia?
Yes. Request your property record card from the Alexandria city assessor's office and check it for errors, then compare your assessed value with recent sales of similar homes. If it still looks too high, file a formal appeal with the local review board named on your assessment notice before the deadline printed on the notice — windows are short, often 30 to 90 days.