Because Champaign has a very large number of students who are 18 years or older and in college, it is thought of as a college town. This has a major influence on local Champaign lifestyle, entertainment, and culture in general. Life in Champaign is very much tied to the academic calendar: when students return from the summer break in the fall, one will notice them out and about, buying groceries, out with friends, and generally getting re-acquainted with each other. In Champaign people study hard and play hard, and there is ample opportunity to do both.
Not only is Champaign a city with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, creating a decent-sized population of people who are young, single, educated, and upwardly-mobile. This makes it a good choice for other relocating single professionals. Here, these young singles will find many others like themselves, with opportunities for friendships, socializing, romance, and fun.
One of the benefits of Champaign is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 16.67 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.
Although the majority of commuting trips in the city are by private automobile, Champaign is somewhat unusual for a city of its size for having a substantial number of people who use public transportation. For a lot of people, the bus helps to get to and from their jobs every morning, which benefits everyone in the Champaign area by reducing both traffic and air pollution.
If knowledge is power, Champaign is a pretty powerful place. 51.76% of the adults in Champaign have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns.
The per capita income in Champaign in 2022 was $34,879, which is middle income relative to Illinois and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $139,516 for a family of four. However, Champaign contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Champaign is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Champaign home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Champaign residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Champaign include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Polish.
Champaign also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 17.01%.
The most common language spoken in Champaign is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Spanish.
