Boston is a very large coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 653,833 people and 206 associated neighborhoods, Boston is the largest community in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock in Boston was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country. Housing costs in Boston 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.Boston is a decidedly white-collar city, with fully 90.62% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Boston is a city of professionals, managers, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Boston who work in management occupations (12.99%), business and financial occupations (9.58%), and office and administrative support (9.06%). Also of interest is that Boston has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. A relatively large number of people in Boston telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 18.78% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. 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. In addition, Boston is a major college town that has a very high percentage of its residents over 18 years old who are college students. Naturally, collegiate life has a major influence on the local Boston culture, lifestyle and music scene. In fact, Boston is one of only a few big cities that are also major college towns. The combination of big city status and thousands of college students gives Boston on one hand, a sophisticated style, while on the other also provides a youthful feel and lots of diversions and entertainment for students. Believe it or not, Boston is one of the biggest "college towns" in America, generating lift to the economy of the entire region, and issuing forth thousands of newly-minted college students every spring, powering the innovation economy, the arts, and a lively club scene. Boston 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. Such areas are often places that visitors and locals go for waterfront activities or taking in the scenery. In Boston, however, the average commute to work is quite long. On average, people spend 31.65 minutes each day getting to work, which is significantly higher than the national average. One bright side is that local public transit is widely used, so it may be an option to avoid the headache of driving in the heavy traffic by leaving the car at home and taking transit. In addition, the city is also quite pedestrian-friendly, because many neighborhoods are very dense and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot. Boston is a big city, and with that comes lots of benefits. One benefit is that most big cities have public transit, but Boston really shines when it comes to the extensiveness and use of its public transit system. More than most large American cities, Boston citizens use public transit daily to get to and from work. And while there are transportation options, most people in Boston ride the subway. Whereas in some cities one is destined to sit in traffic every morning to get to work and every evening to get home, in Boston a lot leave their cars at home (if they even choose to own one), and hop a ride on the subway.If knowledge is power, Boston is a pretty powerful place. 54.07% of the adults in Boston 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 Boston in 2022 was $60,001, which is upper middle income relative to Massachusetts, and wealthy relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $240,004 for a family of four. However, Boston contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Boston is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Boston home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Boston residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Boston also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 18.94% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Boston include Irish, Italian, English, German, and Haitian. Boston also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 27.51%. The most common language spoken in Boston is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Chinese.
