Oberlin is a somewhat small city located in the state of Ohio. With a population of 8,257 people and two constituent neighborhoods, Oberlin is the 225th largest community in Ohio. Oberlin has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country.

Oberlin is a decidedly white-collar city, with fully 85.91% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Oberlin is a city of professionals, service providers, and sales and office workers. There are especially a lot of people living in Oberlin who work in teaching (19.66%), office and administrative support jobs (15.63%), and food service (9.53%).

Of important note, Oberlin is also a city of artists. Oberlin has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Oberlin's character.

Also of interest is that Oberlin has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

Oberlin is a small town where college students really create the town feel and character. So many small towns have lost population over the last 20-30 years that having the local college presence in the Oberlin area, with all of the energy of the students filling area dorms and apartments each fall, really helps Oberlin maintain a good economy.

One of the benefits of Oberlin is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 13.77 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.

As is often the case in a small city, Oberlin doesn't have a public transportation system that people use for their commute.

Oberlin Information and Demographics

The population of Oberlin is very well educated relative to most cities and towns in the nation, where the average community has 14.96% of its adult population holding a 4-year degree or higher: 41.23% of adults in Oberlin have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.

The per capita income in Oberlin in 2000 was $20,704, which is upper middle income relative to Ohio and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $82,816 for a family of four.

Oberlin is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Oberlin home come from a variety of different races and ancestries. The most prevalent race in Oberlin is White, followed by African-American. Important ancestries of people in Oberlin include English, German, Irish, Italian, Polish, Scottish, and Russian.

The most common language spoken in Oberlin is English. Some people also speak Spanish.