Amherst is a medium-sized town located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 34,873 people and seven constituent neighborhoods, Amherst is the 42nd largest community in Massachusetts.

Amherst is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 91.93% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Amherst is a town of professionals, sales and office workers, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Amherst who work in teaching (19.26%), office and administrative support jobs (16.65%), and food service (8.65%).

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

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.

Amherst is also a major college town with a large number of people who are 18 years or older and attending college. As is often the case in college towns, the many students that live in Amherst have a strong influence on the local culture and entertainment scene, which may seem dormant by comparison in the summer months when much of the student population is away. In the fall, the return of students has a reinvigorating effect on the community. Because colleges are lasting institutions, they have a stabilizing effect on the economy by providing direct local benefits such as jobs for faculty and staff and spending by students. Amherst's economy is one such example of this.

Residents of the town have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 18.03 minutes getting to work every day.

The town of Amherst is a decent size, but despite this, it doesn't have a viable public transit system that people can use to get to work.

Amherst Information and Demographics

Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in Amherst. 68.67% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 14.96%.

The per capita income in Amherst in 2000 was $17,427, which is low income relative to Massachusetts, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $69,708 for a family of four.

Amherst is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Amherst home come from a variety of different races and ancestries. The most prevalent race in Amherst is White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in Amherst include Irish, English, Italian, German, Polish, French Canadian, Russian, and French.

The most common language spoken in Amherst is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Chinese.