Portsmouth, VA
Portsmouth (city) County · Virginia · United States
Home to 19,235 people across 4.52 square miles.
At a glance
23704 by the numbers
Every figure below comes from the 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the Census Gazetteer, or is computed from those. Margins of error are shown where they matter.
Location
Where 23704 is
| Coordinates | 36.826697, -76.312032 |
|---|---|
| Time zone | America/New_York |
| County | Portsmouth (city) County |
| State | Virginia (VA) |
| Land area | 4.52 mi² |
| Coordinate source | Census ZCTA internal point |
Local time
America/New_York
Current weather
Live from the National Weather Service
Loading forecast…
Distance to major cities
Straight-line, computed from coordinates
| Philadelphia, PA | 224.7 mi |
|---|---|
| New York, NY | 295.8 mi |
| Boston, MA | 473.5 mi |
| Atlanta, GA | 502.4 mi |
People
Who lives in 23704
19,235 residents in 8,651 households, averaging 2.22 people per household. The largest age group is under 18 at 21.1% of residents, and 42.3% of households are a single person living alone.
Age distribution
Share of residents by age band
Households
Composition and size
| Total households | 8,651 |
|---|---|
| Average household size | 2.22 |
| Family households | 50.1% |
| Living alone | 42.3% |
| Median age | 36.1 years |
| Households with internet | 85.3% |
Race & ethnicity
Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.
Income & work
What people earn in 23704
The median household here earns $44,739 a year, below the US median of $70,109, which puts 23704 ahead of 10% of American ZIP codes. 27.4% of residents live below the poverty line.
Compared to the US
This ZIP against the national median
| Median household income | $44,739 ±$4,699 |
|---|---|
| Per capita income | $30,932 |
| Poverty rate | 27.4% |
| Unemployment rate | 9.5% |
| Labor force participation | 63.1% |
Household income distribution
Share of households in each bracket
Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 22.2% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 86.3% finished high school.
Housing
Homes and rent in 23704
A typical home is valued at $197,400, and median rent runs $1,279 a month. This is a renter-majority area — 62.0% of occupied homes are rented, and the typical building went up in 1959.
Costs
Typical values
| Median home value | $197,400 |
|---|---|
| Median gross rent | $1,279/mo |
| Median year built | 1959 |
| Housing units | 9,538 |
| Vacancy rate | 9.3% |
Own vs. rent
Of 8,651 occupied units
| Owner households | 3,288 |
|---|---|
| Renter households | 5,363 |
Building types
Units by structure size
Getting to work
How 23704 commutes
67.8% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 25.7 minutes.
Mode of transport
Workers 16 and older
Travel time
Mean commute 25.7 minutes
Overview
Understanding ZIP code 23704
ZIP code 23704 is assigned to Portsmouth, VA, and falls within Portsmouth (city) County. Like every US postal code, it began as a mail-routing device rather than a geographic boundary — the US Postal Service groups delivery routes under a single code so carriers and sorting equipment can process mail efficiently. Today it also serves as a practical shorthand for the area itself: roughly 19,235 people live inside it.
At 4,256 residents per square mile spread over 4.52 square miles, 23704 reads as a densely built-up area. It is a mid-sized postal code by population, and density shapes almost everything else on this page — how people get to work, whether they own or rent, and what housing costs.
Household earnings are well below the national median. At $44,739, 23704 ranks among the lower-income postal codes, ahead of 10% of them. The US median for comparison is $70,109. Bear in mind that median income describes the midpoint household, not the average — it is not pulled upward by a handful of very high earners the way a mean would be.
Living here
What life in Portsmouth looks like
Housing in 23704 costs close to the national median. A typical home is valued at $197,400 against a US median of $207,500, and median gross rent runs $1,279 a month. The split between owning and renting is fairly even at 38.0% owner-occupied, which tends to indicate a mix of housing types rather than one dominant form.
The building stock is dominated by detached single-family houses, which account for 49.0% of housing units here. The median construction year is 1959, making the housing here mid-century.
The population skews broadly in line with the national age profile, with a median age of 36.1 against 42 nationally. The average household holds 2.22 people, and 50.1% are family households.
Getting to work takes 25.7 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 67.8% of workers.
Where to stay
Where to stay in Portsmouth, VA
Portsmouth is a built-up area, so you will generally find a mix of chain hotels near the main approach roads and a smaller number of independent properties closer to the centre. Staying in 23704 itself often costs less than an equivalent room in the nearest downtown while keeping you close to it.
Median rent in 23704 is $1,279 a month, which sits in the middle of the national range; accommodation pricing locally tends to be similarly mid-market. For reference, Philadelphia, PA is about 224.7 miles away in a straight line, which is worth factoring in if you are comparing a stay here against one closer to the city centre.
Availability and pricing change constantly, so the live search below will give you a more accurate picture than any figure we could publish here. It opens results for this area on Booking.com.
Opens Booking.com in a new tab. We are not affiliated with Booking.com and receive nothing from this link.
Practical uses
What ZIP code 23704 is used for
Beyond addressing mail, 23704 does a lot of quiet administrative work. Retailers use it to calculate shipping and sales tax at checkout. Insurers use it to set premiums, since risk profiles vary geographically. Employers and marketers use it to define service areas. Government agencies use it to route benefits and organise reporting. If you have ever been asked for a postal code by a form that clearly does not intend to send you anything, this is why.
For anyone weighing a move, 23704 offers a compact profile of Portsmouth: 19,235 residents, a median household income of $44,739, 22.2% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 9.5%. A handful of figures like these answer more relocation questions than most neighbourhood guides do.
One caution worth repeating: a postal code is not a neighbourhood. 23704 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in Portsmouth may be split across more than one code. Boundaries also shift as USPS adjusts delivery routes. Treat the figures here as describing a delivery area, which is what they actually measure.
Nearby
ZIP codes near 23704
The eight closest postal codes by centroid distance, each with its own full profile. You can also browse every Virginia ZIP code or use the ZIP Express Lookup to search by city, county or time zone.
Other ZIP codes in Portsmouth
Portsmouth is served by 8 postal codes.
More in Portsmouth (city) County
Look up another
Search any ZIP code
Questions
Common questions about 23704
What city is ZIP code 23704 in?
What is the population of 23704?
What is the average income in 23704?
How expensive is housing in 23704?
Is 23704 a good place to live?
What time zone is 23704 in?
How big is ZIP code 23704?
Is 23704 urban, suburban or rural?
How much is rent in 23704?
What is the commute like from 23704?
How many people work in 23704?
Where should I stay when visiting 23704?
Does 23704 cover more than one city or county?
Can ZIP code 23704 change?
Methodology
Where this data comes from
- Postal geography — GeoNames open postal code database (CC BY 4.0), cross-checked against the US Census Gazetteer.
- Demographics, income, housing, commute — US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 23704. Tables B01001, B01002, B01003, B02001, B03003, B08301, B08303, B11001, B15003, B17001, B19001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25024, B25035, B25064, B25077, B28002.
- Land and water area — US Census Bureau 2023 Gazetteer Files.
- Weather — NOAA National Weather Service, fetched live in your browser.
- Map — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).