Amherst is a very small town located in the state of Virginia. With a population of 2,128 people and three associated neighborhoods, Amherst is the 214th largest community in Virginia.Unlike some towns where white-collar or blue-collar occupations dominate the local economy, Amherst is neither predominantly one nor the other. Instead, it has a mixed workforce of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Amherst is a town of professionals, service providers, and managers. There are especially a lot of people living in Amherst who work in business and financial occupations (10.65%), sales jobs (10.17%), and office and administrative support (7.26%). And if you like science, one thing you'll find is that Amherst has lots of scientists living in town - whether they be life scientists, physical scientists (like astronomers), or social scientists (like geographers!). So, if you're scientific-minded, you might like it here too. Also of interest is that Amherst has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 14.67% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. 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. Residents will find that the town is relatively quiet. This is because it is not over-populated, and it has fewer college students, renters, and young children - all of whom can be noisy at times. So, if you're looking for a relatively peaceful place to live, Amherst is worth considering. Being a small town, Amherst does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.In terms of college education, Amherst is somewhat better educated than the 21.84% who have a 4-year degree or higher in the typical US community: 25.74% of adults 25 and older in the town have at least a bachelor's degree. The per capita income in Amherst in 2022 was $39,407, which is middle income relative to Virginia, and upper middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $157,628 for a family of four. However, Amherst contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Amherst is a somewhat ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Amherst home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Amherst residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Amherst include English, Irish, German, Scottish, and French. The most common language spoken in Amherst is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and French.
