Swampscott is a medium-sized coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Massachusetts. With a population of 15,658 people and four associated neighborhoods, Swampscott is the 137th largest community in Massachusetts. Much of the housing stock in Swampscott was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic towns in the country.

Swampscott home prices are not only among the most expensive in Massachusetts, but Swampscott real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.

Also of interest is that Swampscott has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.

One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 27.22% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.

In addition, Swampscott is home to many people who could be described as "urban sophisticates". Urban sophisticates are educated, wealthy, executives and professionals, who have urbane tastes in books, food, and travel, whether they actually live in a big city, or choose to reside in a small town. In big or medium-sized cities, urban sophisticates tend to frequent art institutions such as opera, symphonies, ballet, live theatre, and museums.

Swampscott is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.

One downside of living in Swampscott, however, is that residents on average have to contend with a long commute, spending on average 33.46 minutes every day commuting to work. It is, however, a pedestrian-friendly town. Many of its neighborhoods are dense enough and have amenities close enough together that people find it feasible to get around on foot. In addition, local public transit is widely used. For those who would prefer to avoid driving entirely and leave their car at home, it may be an option to use the transit instead.

Even though Swampscott is a smaller town, it has many people who hop on public transportation – mostly the train for their daily commute to work. Typically, these people are commuting to good jobs in the surrounding cities.

Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to Swampscott, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. Swampscott is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 62.16% of its adults having a college degree or even advanced degree, compared to a national average across all communities of 21.84%.

The per capita income in Swampscott in 2022 was $78,590, which is wealthy relative to Massachusetts and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $314,360 for a family of four. However, Swampscott contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

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

Foreign born people are also an important part of Swampscott's cultural character, accounting for 20.53% of the town’s population.

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