Virginia City Rankings

How 14 cities in Virginia compare on combined EMF exposure, cell towers, 5G deployment, and power grid (ELF) exposure. Each list shows up to 10 cities with a published EMF Radar report. See the methodology for how scores are calculated.

Virginia Cities with the Highest EMF Exposure

Cities with the highest combined RF + ELF exposure scores. See the national top 50

Rank City EMF score
1 Alexandria 85
2 Portsmouth 66
3 Manassas 65
4 Leesburg 60
5 Virginia Beach 59
6 Norfolk 57
7 Richmond 56
8 Charlottesville 55
9 Roanoke 51
10 Harrisonburg 48

Virginia Cities with the Lowest EMF Exposure

Cities with the lowest combined RF + ELF exposure scores. See the national top 50

Rank City EMF score
1 Hampton 24
2 Newport News 32
3 Chesapeake 39
4 Suffolk 42
5 Harrisonburg 48
6 Roanoke 51
7 Charlottesville 55
8 Richmond 56
9 Norfolk 57
10 Virginia Beach 59

Virginia Cities with the Most Cell Towers

Cities ranked by the total number of cell towers mapped within city limits. See the national top 50

Rank City Cell towers EMF score
1 Alexandria 5,397 85
2 Manassas 920 65
3 Norfolk 829 57
4 Richmond 769 56
5 Portsmouth 733 66
6 Virginia Beach 673 59
7 Leesburg 558 60
8 Charlottesville 481 55
9 Harrisonburg 447 48
10 Hampton 313 24

Virginia Cities with the Most 5G Towers

Cities ranked by the number of towers broadcasting 5G NR. See the national top 50

Rank City 5G towers EMF score
1 Alexandria 1,530 85
2 Manassas 320 65
3 Norfolk 258 57
4 Virginia Beach 250 59
5 Portsmouth 234 66
6 Richmond 215 56
7 Harrisonburg 157 48
8 Leesburg 156 60
9 Charlottesville 115 55
10 Hampton 105 24

Virginia Cities with the Highest Share of 5G Towers

Cities where the largest percentage of cell towers broadcast 5G. See the national top 50

Rank City 5G share EMF score
1 Chesapeake 41% 39
2 Virginia Beach 37% 59
3 Harrisonburg 35% 48
4 Manassas 35% 65
5 Hampton 34% 24
6 Portsmouth 32% 66
7 Norfolk 31% 57
8 Alexandria 28% 85
9 Richmond 28% 56
10 Leesburg 28% 60

Virginia Cities with the Highest Power Grid (ELF) Exposure

Cities ranked by ELF score from transmission lines and substations. See the national top 50

Rank City ELF score EMF score
1 Roanoke 30 51
2 Portsmouth 29 66
3 Alexandria 27 85
4 Manassas 24 65
5 Richmond 23 56
6 Harrisonburg 21 48
7 Leesburg 18 60
8 Virginia Beach 18 59
9 Norfolk 18 57
10 Suffolk 17 42
Back to Virginia National rankings