Amherst is a medium-sized city located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 40,059 people and seven associated neighborhoods, Amherst is the 41st largest community in Massachusetts. Housing costs in Amherst are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in Massachusetts.Amherst is a decidedly white-collar city, with fully 89.29% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Amherst is a city of professionals, service providers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Amherst who work in teaching (18.51%), food service (12.87%), and office and administrative support (8.44%). Also of interest is that Amherst has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 16.72% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes. Because Amherst has a very large number of students who are 18 years or older and in college, it is thought of as a college town. This has a major influence on local Amherst lifestyle, entertainment, and culture in general. Life in Amherst is very much tied to the academic calendar: when students return from the summer break in the fall, one will notice them out and about, buying groceries, out with friends, and generally getting re-acquainted with each other. In Amherst people study hard and play hard, and there is ample opportunity to do both. One of the benefits of Amherst is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 19.20 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result. Like elsewhere in America, most people in Amherst use a private automobile to get to work. But notably, a substantial number of Amherst‘s citizens do make use of public transit in their daily commute, primarily riding the bus. This helps more people get to work with less air pollution, and require fewer highways to get them there.If knowledge is power, Amherst is a pretty powerful place. 72.31% of the adults in Amherst have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns. The per capita income in Amherst in 2022 was $28,179, 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 $112,716 for a family of four. However, Amherst contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Amherst is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Amherst home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Amherst residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Amherst include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Polish. Amherst also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 16.45%. The most common language spoken in Amherst is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Chinese.
