Salem is a somewhat small coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of New Jersey. With a population of 5,369 people and five associated neighborhoods, Salem is the 305th largest community in New Jersey. Salem has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic cities.

A relatively large number of people in Salem telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 8.52% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. 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.

One of the nice things about Salem is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.

Despite the fact that it is a small city, Salem has quite a few people who take public transportation – mostly the bus - for their daily commute to work. This helps to fill a real need in the city for affordable transportation.

The citizens of Salem are slightly less educated than the national average of 21.84% for the average city or town: 14.95% of adults in Salem have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree

The per capita income in Salem in 2022 was $26,130, which is low income relative to New Jersey and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $104,520 for a family of four. However, Salem contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

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

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