West Chester is a medium-sized borough located in the state of Pennsylvania. With a population of 22,758 people and 25 associated neighborhoods, West Chester is the 46th largest community in Pennsylvania. West Chester has an unusually large stock of pre-World War II architecture, making it one of the older and more historic boroughs. West Chester home prices are not only among the most expensive in Pennsylvania, but West Chester real estate also consistently ranks among the most expensive in America.West Chester is a decidedly white-collar borough, with fully 90.57% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, West Chester is a borough of professionals, sales and office workers, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in West Chester who work in management occupations (11.77%), sales jobs (11.05%), and food service (10.12%). Also of interest is that West Chester 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: 17.22% 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. West Chester is also a major college town with a large number of people who are 18 years or older and attending college. As is often the case in college towns, the many students that live in West Chester have a strong influence on the local culture and entertainment scene, which may seem dormant by comparison in the summer months when much of the student population is away. In the fall, the return of students has a reinvigorating effect on the community. Because colleges are lasting institutions, they have a stabilizing effect on the economy by providing direct local benefits such as jobs for faculty and staff and spending by students. West Chester’s economy is one such example of this. Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to West Chester, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. West Chester is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 59.08% 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 West Chester in 2022 was $44,502, which is upper middle income relative to Pennsylvania and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $178,008 for a family of four. However, West Chester contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. West Chester is a very ethnically-diverse borough. The people who call West Chester home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of West Chester residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in West Chester include Irish, German, Italian, English, and Polish. The most common language spoken in West Chester is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Langs. of India.
