In addition, Kalamazoo 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 Kalamazoo culture, lifestyle and entertainment options. Kalamazoo really pulses to the beat of the academic calendar. In Kalamazoo 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 Kalamazoo. 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. Kalamazoo benefits directly from this.
Not only is Kalamazoo a city with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, shaping the character of the city into a place that is geared toward, and considered attractive to, many single, educated people. Many singles consider Kalamazoo a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.
One of the benefits of Kalamazoo is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 18.77 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.
The population of Kalamazoo is very well educated relative to most cities and towns in the nation, where the average community has 21.84% of its adult population holding a 4-year degree or higher: 37.21% of adults in Kalamazoo have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.
The per capita income in Kalamazoo in 2018 was $25,305, which is lower middle income relative to Michigan and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $101,220 for a family of four. However, Kalamazoo contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Kalamazoo is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Kalamazoo home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Kalamazoo residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Kalamazoo include German, Irish, English, Polish, and Dutch.
The most common language spoken in Kalamazoo is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and Spanish.
