West Virginia Counties And County Seats
West Virginia is organized into 55 counties. Each county has a county seat, which is the traditional hub for public records and day-to-day county services. If you compare places across countries, think of a county as a practical, map-friendly layer between the state and the city or town.
What This Page Helps With
- Find any West Virginia county fast, with its county seat
- Use FIPS codes for clean, consistent county-level datasets
- Understand how counties relate to cities, towns, and addresses
Quick County Facts
- 55 counties statewide
- County names are unique within the state, great for indexing and search
- County seats are the simplest anchor when you are matching records
Complete List Of West Virginia Counties
For data work, the county FIPS code is a dependable key. It stays consistent even when you format names differently. Use the list below to verify spelling, match datasets, and confirm the correct county seat.
| County FIPS | County | County Seat |
|---|---|---|
| 001 | Barbour County | Philippi |
| 003 | Berkeley County | Martinsburg |
| 005 | Boone County | Madison |
| 007 | Braxton County | Sutton |
| 009 | Brooke County | Wellsburg |
| 011 | Cabell County | Huntington |
| 013 | Calhoun County | Grantsville |
| 015 | Clay County | Clay |
| 017 | Doddridge County | West Union |
| 019 | Fayette County | Fayetteville |
| 021 | Gilmer County | Glenville |
| 023 | Grant County | Petersburg |
| 025 | Greenbrier County | Lewisburg |
| 027 | Hampshire County | Romney |
| 029 | Hancock County | New Cumberland |
| 031 | Hardy County | Moorefield |
| 033 | Harrison County | Clarksburg |
| 035 | Jackson County | Ripley |
| 037 | Jefferson County | Charles Town |
| 039 | Kanawha County | Charleston |
| 041 | Lewis County | Weston |
| 043 | Lincoln County | Hamlin |
| 045 | Logan County | Logan |
| 047 | McDowell County | Welch |
| 049 | Marion County | Fairmont |
| 051 | Marshall County | Moundsville |
| 053 | Mason County | Point Pleasant |
| 055 | Mercer County | Princeton |
| 057 | Mineral County | Keyser |
| 059 | Mingo County | Williamson |
| 061 | Monongalia County | Morgantown |
| 063 | Monroe County | Union |
| 065 | Morgan County | Berkeley Springs |
| 067 | Nicholas County | Summersville |
| 069 | Ohio County | Wheeling |
| 071 | Pendleton County | Franklin |
| 073 | Pleasants County | St. Marys |
| 075 | Pocahontas County | Marlinton |
| 077 | Preston County | Kingwood |
| 079 | Putnam County | Winfield |
| 081 | Raleigh County | Beckley |
| 083 | Randolph County | Elkins |
| 085 | Ritchie County | Harrisville |
| 087 | Roane County | Spencer |
| 089 | Summers County | Hinton |
| 091 | Taylor County | Grafton |
| 093 | Tucker County | Parsons |
| 095 | Tyler County | Middlebourne |
| 097 | Upshur County | Buckhannon |
| 099 | Wayne County | Wayne |
| 101 | Webster County | Webster Springs |
| 103 | Wetzel County | New Martinsville |
| 105 | Wirt County | Elizabeth |
| 107 | Wood County | Parkersburg |
| 109 | Wyoming County | Pineville |
How To Use County FIPS Codes
- Store FIPS as text so leading zeros stay intact, like 001.
- Pair state FIPS with county FIPS when needed. West Virginia state FIPS is 54.
- When names vary, trust the code. It keeps your county list stable across teh state.
How Counties Work In West Virginia
A county is a geographic and administrative area inside the state. In West Virginia, counties are a familiar way to organize public services, records, and mapping. If you are browsing county lists, you are looking at the same map layer used in many official datasets and address systems.
County Seat Basics
- The county seat is the traditional center for county records.
- Many forms, licenses, and local services reference the seat by name.
- For mapping, pairing County + Seat reduces confusion.
County Versus City Or Town
- Cities and towns sit inside counties.
- One county can contain multiple municipalities, plus unincorporated areas.
- Addresses often use the city name for mail, while data uses the county for stats.
County-Level Data You Can Use
County data stays useful for years because it is standardized. That makes it ideal for comparing places, cleaning lists, building search filters, or summarizing local information without digging into every neighborhood.
| Field | What It Helps With | Example |
|---|---|---|
| County Name | Readable labels for pages, menus, and filters | Monongalia County |
| County FIPS | Reliable matching key across datasets | 061 |
| County Seat | Fast validation and human-friendly reference | Morgantown |
| State Abbreviation | Uniform formatting in lists and exports | WV |
| Full FIPS (State + County) | Single code that identifies a county nationwide | 54061 |
Practical Regions By County
West Virginia is often described using practical geography groupings. These are not always official labels, yet they are handy for organizing county pages, travel planning, and broad map navigation.
| Region Label | Counties Commonly Included |
|---|---|
| Eastern Panhandle | Berkeley, Jefferson, Morgan |
| Northern Panhandle | Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio |
| North-Central | Harrison, Marion, Monongalia, Preston, Taylor |
| Mid-Ohio Valley | Jackson, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Wirt, Wood |
| Kanawha Valley | Cabell, Kanawha, Mason, Putnam |
| Central Mountains | Braxton, Clay, Fayette, Nicholas, Randolph, Webster |
| Eastern Highlands | Grant, Greenbrier, Hampshire, Hardy, Pendleton, Pocahontas, Tucker |
| Southern Mountains | Boone, Logan, McDowell, Mercer, Mingo, Monroe, Raleigh, Summers, Wayne, Wyoming |
Tips For Reading County Maps And Lists
- When a place name repeats across the country, use WV + county FIPS to stay precise.
- For SEO-friendly pages, pair County Name with County Seat in the first screen of content.
- Keep a consistent format for sorting, like County, West Virginia, United States.
- If you are building filters, list counties alphabetically and store codes separately.
Friendly Naming Pattern For Pages
- County Name + West Virginia
- County seat line near the top for instant orientation
- A short section that explains what a county is, in simple terms
That structure stays evergreen, and it reads well for both people and search engines.
Common Questions About West Virginia Counties
How Many Counties Are In West Virginia?
There are 55 counties. That number is stable and widely used in official lists and datasets.
What Is A County Seat?
A county seat is the main administrative center for a county. It is a dependable reference point when you are matching names, organizing records, or browsing county-level information.
Why Do FIPS Codes Matter?
FIPS codes reduce ambiguity. They stay consistent, even if a county name is abbreviated or formatted differently across sources.
Is Kanawha County Important For Statewide Lists?
Yes. Kanawha County is commonly referenced in statewide directories because its county seat is Charleston, the state capital.