Bay Shore is a medium-sized coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of New York. With a population of 29,244 people and 14 associated neighborhoods, Bay Shore is the 50th largest community in New York.

Housing costs in Bay Shore are among some of the highest in the nation, although real estate prices here don't compare to real estate prices in the most expensive communities in New York.

A relatively large number of people in Bay Shore telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 9.87% 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.

Bay Shore 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.

Although the majority of commuting trips in the town are by private automobile, Bay Shore is somewhat unusual for a town of its size for having a substantial number of people who use public transportation. For a lot of people, the train helps to get to and from their jobs every morning, which benefits everyone in the Bay Shore area by reducing both traffic and air pollution.

The overall education level of Bay Shore citizens is substantially higher than the typical US community, as 30.14% of adults in Bay Shore have at least a bachelor's degree, and the average American community has 21.84%.

The per capita income in Bay Shore in 2022 was $42,341, which is middle income relative to New York, and upper middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $169,364 for a family of four. However, Bay Shore contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Bay Shore is an extremely ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Bay Shore home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. People of Hispanic or Latino origin are the most prevalent group in Bay Shore, accounting for 39.17% of the town’s residents (people of Hispanic or Latino origin can be of any race). The greatest number of Bay Shore residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Bay Shore include Irish, Italian, German, Haitian, and English.

Foreign born people are also an important part of Bay Shore's cultural character, accounting for 32.86% of the town’s population.

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