page_title: Economy of West Virginia
hierarchical_section_title: Economy of West Virginia
caption_attribution_description: Snowshoe Mountain, Snowshoe, West Virginia
context_page_description: The economy of West Virginia nominally would be the 62nd largest economy globally behind Iraq and ahead of Croatia according to 2009 World Bank projections, and the 64th largest behind Iraq and ahead of Libya according to 2009 International Monetary Fund projections. The state has a projected nominal GDP of $63.34 billion in 2009 according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis report of November 2010, and a real GDP of $55.04 billion. The real GDP growth of the state in 2009 of .7% was the 7th best in the country. West Virginia's economy accelerated in 2014 with a growth rate of 5.1%, ranking third among the fastest growing states in the United States alongside Wyoming and just behind North Dakota and Texas.
  Morgantown was ranked by Forbes as the 10th best small city in the nation to conduct business in 2010.
  The state is a global hub for chemicals, a national hub for biotech industries and a leader in energy, while having a diverse economy in aerospace, automotive, healthcare and education, metals and steels, media and telecommunications, manufacturing, hospitality, biometrics, forestry, and tourism.
context_section_description: The economy of West Virginia nominally would be the 62nd largest economy globally behind Iraq and ahead of Croatia according to 2009 World Bank projections, and the 64th largest behind Iraq and ahead of Libya according to 2009 International Monetary Fund projections. The state has a projected nominal GDP of $63.34 billion in 2009 according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis report of November 2010, and a real GDP of $55.04 billion. The real GDP growth of the state in 2009 of .7% was the 7th best in the country. West Virginia's economy accelerated in 2014 with a growth rate of 5.1%, ranking third among the fastest growing states in the United States alongside Wyoming and just behind North Dakota and Texas.
  Morgantown was ranked by Forbes as the 10th best small city in the nation to conduct business in 2010.
  The state is a global hub for chemicals, a national hub for biotech industries and a leader in energy, while having a diverse economy in aerospace, automotive, healthcare and education, metals and steels, media and telecommunications, manufacturing, hospitality, biometrics, forestry, and tourism.
  West Virginia's unemployment rate in August 2019 was 4.6%, the lowest since the start of the Great Recession.
caption: The Village at Snowshoe Mountain in Pocahontas County. Snowshoe has been ranked as the best overall ski resort in the Mid-Atlantic and South East regions and fourth-best in accommodations on the East Coast.[1] Tourism is a large industry in the state, producing a $13 million daily economic impact.[2]
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