Chester is a somewhat small city located in the state of South Carolina. With a population of 5,187 people and seven associated neighborhoods, Chester is the 76th largest community in South Carolina.Because occupations involving physical labor dominate the local economy, Chester is generally considered to be a blue-collar town. 43.39% of the Chester workforce is employed in blue-collar occupations, compared to the national average of 27.7%. Overall, Chester is a city of production and manufacturing workers, service providers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Chester who work in office and administrative support (14.22%), maintenance occupations (8.61%), and food service (6.52%). In Chester, however, the average commute to work is quite long. On average, people spend 32.11 minutes each day getting to work, which is significantly higher than the national average. The percentage of people in Chester with college degrees is quite a bit lower than the national average for cities and towns of 21.84%: just 10.83% of people over 25 have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree. The per capita income in Chester in 2022 was $20,036, which is low income relative to South Carolina and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $80,144 for a family of four. Chester is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Chester home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Chester residents report their race to be Black or African-American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Chester include Welsh, Italian, Scots-Irish, African, and Irish. The most common language spoken in Chester is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Vietnamese.
