Harrisonburg is a medium-sized city located in the state of Virginia. With a population of 40,468 people and eight constituent neighborhoods, Harrisonburg is the 23rd largest community in Virginia.

Unlike some cities, Harrisonburg isn't mainly white- or blue-collar. Instead, the most prevalent occupations for people in Harrisonburg are a mix of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Harrisonburg is a city of sales and office workers, professionals, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Harrisonburg who work in office and administrative support jobs (13.69%), sales jobs (12.50%), and food service (9.98%).

In addition, Harrisonburg 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 local Harrisonburg culture, lifestyle and entertainment options. Harrisonburg really pulses to the beat of the academic calendar. In Harrisonburg every fall, returning students reinvigorate the community, who you will notice are all over town, buying groceries, out with friends, and getting acquainted or re-acquainted with each other and Harrisonburg. One of the beneficial effects that colleges provide is that they tend to be lasting institutions that deliver direct economic benefits to the local economy in the form of such things as jobs for faculty and staff, and spending by students. Harrisonburg benefits directly from this.

Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of Harrisonburg spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 14.78 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the city are less than they would otherwise be.

For the size of the city, public transportation in Harrisonburg is quite heavily used. Mostly, people who use it for their daily commute are taking the bus. For Harrisonburg, the benefits are reduced air pollution and congestion on the highways.

Harrisonburg Information and Demographics

The education level of Harrisonburg citizens is substantially higher than the average US city or town, as 31.22% of adults in Harrisonburg have at least a bachelor's degree.

The per capita income in Harrisonburg in 2000 was $14,898, which is lower middle income relative to Virginia and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $59,592 for a family of four.

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

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