Independence is a larger medium-sized city located in the state of Missouri. With a population of 121,202 people and 36 associated neighborhoods, Independence is the fifth largest community in Missouri.Unlike some cities where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Independence is neither predominantly one nor the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Independence is a city of sales and office workers, professionals, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Independence who work in office and administrative support (13.36%), sales jobs (8.60%), and management occupations (8.54%). Also of interest is that Independence has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. A relatively large number of people in Independence telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 8.22% 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. In terms of college education, Independence is nearly on par with the US average for all cities of 21.84%: 19.48% of adults 25 and older in Independence have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree. The per capita income in Independence in 2022 was $31,491, which is upper middle income relative to Missouri, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $125,964 for a family of four. However, Independence contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Independence is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Independence home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Independence residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Independence include German, Irish, English, European, and Italian. The most common language spoken in Independence is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Pacific Island languages.
