Rents are right about where Fairfax's 10-year trend predicts.
Rent by unit size
These are HUD Fair Market Rents, the payment standard for a Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8). They often differ from the $2,456 market median above, and that is expected: FMR is the 40th percentile of standard-quality units and counts gross rent, so it includes essential utilities such as electricity, water, gas, sewer, and trash. The market median is asking rent, which usually excludes utilities. HUD sets FMR once a year; market rent here updates monthly.
Source: HUD Small Area Fair Market Rents. Read the methodology →
12-month history
Last updated: October 17, 2026
What the numbers show
December. Asking rents in Fairfax usually run 1.3% below trend in December and 1.4% above it in July, about $66 a month apart at today's median. Based on 11 years of data.
Rent in Fairfax is 0.3% below its high of $2,464 in April 2025, at $2,456 as of September 2026.
Rent in Fairfax changed +0.8% over the year to September 2026. Across the 66 Virginia cities Zillow tracks, the typical change was +2.5%.
From 2019 to 2024, rent in Fairfax rose 25% while median household income rose 13.1% ($116,979 to $132,348). Rent outpaced income.
Rent in Fairfax is 25.8% higher than in March 2020. Across the US, rent is up 37.3% over the same stretch.
Rent has risen 6 months in a row, and rose in 6 of the last 12 months.
30% of the median household income ($132,348) is $3,309 a month. That covers HUD's Fair Market Rent for up to a 2-bedroom ($2,703); a 3-bedroom is $3,378.
The priciest of 4 ZIP codes in Fairfax, 22032 ($3,700/mo), costs 1.5 times the cheapest, 22033 ($2,434/mo).
Manassas Park, 9 miles away, rents for 14% less ($2,115/mo), about $4,100 a year in savings.
From Zillow's monthly rent index (ZORI) for Fairfax. The seasonal pattern compares Zillow’s seasonally adjusted and unadjusted series. Income is the Census median household income (5-year estimates). Fair Market Rents are HUD’s, which include utilities.
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Who lives here
Fairfax, VA is majority owner-occupied, has a median income above the national average, 62.4% of residents hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2024 5-Year Estimates
How Fairfax, VA has changed in 5 years
Compared with 2021, rent in Fairfax, VA has increased by $550 per month, settling near $2,456 after starting the period at $1,906. Median household income grew from $118,492 to $132,348 between 2021 and 2024, a 11.7% shift. Rent outpaced income growth by roughly 17.2 percentage points, which means renters are spending a larger slice of each paycheck on housing than they did in 2021. Headcount in the area went from 23,980 to 25,026 between 2021 and 2024, a 4.4% change. Taken together, the five-year picture in Fairfax, VA reflects how housing costs and the people paying them have evolved through a stretch that included a pandemic, a hot rental market, and a recent cooling phase.
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At $2,456/mo, how Fairfax rent compares to typical pay (30% rule).
Fairfax rent by bedroom count
Median rent for each apartment size in Fairfax. Click any size for full breakdown.
Tips for renters in Fairfax
Last updated: October 17, 2026
The median rent in Fairfax is $2,456/mo as of October 2026. A studio apartment averages $2,350/mo while a 2-bedroom runs $2,703/mo. One-bedroom apartments average $2,403/mo and 3-bedroom units go for $3,378/mo.
At 22% of local median household income ($132,348/yr), Fairfax ranks as affordable compared to the national benchmark of 30%. Rents have increased 0.8% over the past year.
Frequently asked questions
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How does Fairfax rent compare to other cities in Virginia?
At $2,456/mo, rent takes ~22% of Fairfax's median household income ($132,348/yr). The standard benchmark is 30%.
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Estimated from ZIP-level data
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