Marion is a place where college students are a big part of the character and culture of the town. Small towns have often struggled with declining populations over the past few decades, but the presence of such a large college student population has helped Marion to fight this trend. Not only does the college population add spending and jobs to local economy, but it also contributes a very tangible, youthful energy to the town.
Being a small city, Marion does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.
The citizens of Marion are slightly better educated than the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns, with 21.80% of adults in Marion having a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.
The per capita income in Marion in 2018 was $13,413, which is low income relative to Alabama and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $53,652 for a family of four.
Marion is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Marion home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Marion residents report their race to be Black or African-American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Marion include German, Irish, English, Scots-Irish, and Italian.
The most common language spoken in Marion is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Polish.
