Virginia · County property tax · ACS 2024
Bristol city Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Bristol city pays $1,387 a year, an effective rate of 0.75%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,387
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.75%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- -30%
- vs U.S. average
- #39 of 133
- rank in VA
The verdict
Homeowners in Bristol city pay a median $1,387 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.75%, more affordable than 55% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,387
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.75%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1425 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -30%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($184,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Virginia. Population: 16,849. Owner-occupied homes: 4,598.
The median annual property tax in Bristol city is $1,387, which is 50% lower than the Virginia state average and 30% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.75% on a median home value of $184,100. Property taxes represent 2.8% of the median household income in this county.
Bristol city's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Bristol city's 0.75% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 55%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Bristol city pay a median annual property tax of $1,387, well below the national median and far below the Virginia state median. On a $184,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.75% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Virginia counties by effective rate
Bristol city ranks #39 of 133 counties in Virginia by effective rate (71% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
The latest release moved the bill up
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has ticked up 7.2%, from $1,294 to $1,387. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
Decision signal 5
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Bristol city run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $50,404 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Bristol city as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 27% from $1,094 to $1,387. These ACS medians describe the reported change; they do not identify whether a levy, assessment, home value, or change in the responding households caused it.
The fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 1,836 of 4,598 owner-occupied homes (39.9%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Incomes here are in the lowest quarter nationally while the rate sits just below the middle, and the median bill lands at 2.8% of median household income. The rate reads as unremarkable in a national ranking; the earnings behind it are not, and the ratio above is where the two meet.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Bristol city Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Bristol city homeowners, 1,836 of 4,598 owner-occupied homes (39.9%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 16.3% (751)
- $800 to $1,499 39.9% (1,836)
- $1,500 to $1,999 18.6% (853)
- $2,000 to $2,999 15.5% (712)
- $3,000 or more 7.4% (339)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
107 homes here (2.3%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Virginia handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Bristol city pay about the same bill, a 8% gap.
Bristol city's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Bristol city's effective rate is higher than 71% of the 133 counties in Virginia - ranking #39 of 133.
Where Bristol city sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.75% more affordable than 55% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
What changed since 2020
The median bill in Bristol city moved from $1,094 in the 2020 release to $1,387 in 2024, a change of about 27%. These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates compared across releases that share only one sample year, which is why this page never compares consecutive releases: those overlap in four years of the same households and move mostly on sampling.
Bristol city vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Bristol city | Virginia Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.8% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Bristol city is UNDER · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Virginia counties.
Bristol city rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,387 +7.2% | 0.75% |
| 2023 | $1,294 +3.5% | 0.77% |
| 2022 | $1,250 +9.0% | 0.81% |
| 2021 | $1,147 +4.8% | 0.83% |
| 2020 | $1,094 | 0.86% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Bristol city: tax-to-income at 2.8%
Counties near Bristol city's effective rate
On effective rate, Bristol city sits nearest Llano County (TX), Sherman County (OR), Malheur County (OR).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Lincoln County (GA), Dubois County (IN), Sumner County (TN).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Bristol city: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 200 of 7,290 returns from Bristol city reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,490 - 35% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Virginia
Bristol city rate FAQs
- How does Bristol city property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Bristol city run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.75% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Bristol city, Virginia?
- The median annual property tax in Bristol city is $1,387, an effective rate of 0.75% on a $184,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Bristol city?
- Bristol city, Virginia scores C- (53/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at B+ (+$105). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- Are property taxes increasing in Bristol city?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Bristol city is recorded at $1,387 in the 2024 5-year release against $1,094 in 2020. That is a large swing, and it should be read as movement in a survey estimate rather than as a tax change: the median here rests on about 4,598 owner-occupied homes, and swings above 50% are roughly twelve times more common in the smallest counties than in the largest. Treat the two figures as imprecise and check the county assessor for actual rate changes.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Bristol city?
- Property taxes in Bristol city run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $50,404 median household income.
What to do with Bristol city's UNDER rate
Bristol city's $1,387 median bill sits well below the U.S. median - still size a parcel estimate; local millage and exemptions move the real bill. Estimate your bill →
Bristol city ranks #39 of 133 Virginia counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Virginia overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Bristol city's UNDER effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.75%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,387/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Bristol city
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Bristol city (UNDER · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER LIGHT
Houston County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bristol city at $1,387/yr; rate 0.84% vs Bristol city 0.75%.
Osceola County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bristol city at $1,387/yr; rate 1.13% vs Bristol city 0.75%.
Van Wert County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bristol city at $1,387/yr; rate 0.91% vs Bristol city 0.75%.
Wilson County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bristol city at $1,387/yr; rate 1.48% vs Bristol city 0.75%.
Virginia county set
State ACS overview for every published Virginia county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Bristol city stamps UNDER · LIGHT - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Bristol city (UNDER · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.