Chatham is a good choice for families with children because of several factors. Many other families with children live here, making it a place where both parents and children are more likely to develop social ties with other families. The town’s good public school district and large population of college-educated adults provide an environment conducive to academic success. Many people own their own single-family homes, providing areas for children to play and stability in the community. Finally, Chatham’s overall crime rate is lower than average for the country.

Being a small town, Chatham does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.

The education level of Chatham citizens is very high relative to the national average among all cities (21.84%): 34.82% of adults in Chatham have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.

The per capita income in Chatham in 2018 was $28,699, which is middle income relative to Virginia and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $114,796 for a family of four. However, Chatham contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Chatham is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Chatham home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Chatham residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Chatham include English, German, Irish, Scots-Irish, and Scottish.

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