West Chester is a medium-sized borough located in the state of Pennsylvania. With a population of 19,531 people and 25 associated neighborhoods, West Chester is the 46th largest community in Pennsylvania. Much of the housing stock in West Chester was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic boroughs in the country. West Chester home prices are not only among the most expensive in Pennsylvania, but West Chester real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.West Chester is a decidedly white-collar borough, with fully 90.93% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, West Chester is a borough of professionals, sales and office workers, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in West Chester who work in management occupations (12.63%), sales jobs (11.75%), and office and administrative support (10.27%). Also of interest is that West Chester has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 11.24% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. 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. West Chester is a small town with a large college student population. Because of this, there is a real youthful, hip vibe to the place, and much of the life in the town is centered on the college. This has helped West Chester to buck the trend of other small towns that have suffered declining populations over the past 20 to 30 years. Spending by students, and faculty and staff jobs, are a big part of the local economy. If knowledge is power, West Chester is a pretty powerful place. 55.58% of the adults in West Chester 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 West Chester in 2022 was $41,443, which is upper middle income relative to Pennsylvania and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $165,772 for a family of four. However, West Chester contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. West Chester is a very ethnically-diverse borough. The people who call West Chester home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of West Chester residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. West Chester also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 11.31% of the borough’s residents. Important ancestries of people in West Chester include Irish, German, Italian, English, and Polish. The most common language spoken in West Chester is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Langs. of India.
