New Bedford is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 100,682 people and 31 associated neighborhoods, New Bedford is the ninth largest community in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock in New Bedford was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country.
New Bedford is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.
In terms of college education, the citizens of New Bedford rank slightly lower than the national average. 16.41% of adults 25 and older in New Bedford have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree, while 21.84% of adults have a 4-year degree or higher in the average American community.
The per capita income in New Bedford in 2022 was $29,591, which is low income relative to Massachusetts, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $118,364 for a family of four. However, New Bedford contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
New Bedford is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call New Bedford home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of New Bedford residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. New Bedford also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 23.45% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in New Bedford include Portuguese, Cape Verdean, Irish, French, and English.
New Bedford also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 20.17%.
The most common language spoken in New Bedford is English. Other important languages spoken here include Portuguese and Spanish.