West Lafayette is a medium-sized city located in the state of Indiana. With a population of 44,829 people and 15 associated neighborhoods, West Lafayette is the 23rd largest community in Indiana.

West Lafayette real estate is some of the most expensive in Indiana, although West Lafayette house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.

And if you like science, one thing you'll find is that West Lafayette 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 West Lafayette 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: 10.89% 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.

In addition, West Lafayette is a major college town that has a very high percentage of its residents over 18 years old who are college students. Naturally, collegiate life has a major influence on local West Lafayette culture, lifestyle and entertainment options. West Lafayette really pulses to the beat of the academic calendar. In West Lafayette every fall, returning students reinvigorate the community, who you will notice are all over town, buying groceries, out with friends, and getting acquainted or re-acquainted with each other and West Lafayette. One of the beneficial effects that colleges provide is that they tend to be lasting institutions that deliver direct economic benefits to the local economy in the form of such things as jobs for faculty and staff, and spending by students. West Lafayette benefits directly from this.

West Lafayette, while not large, also appears to be attractive to some younger, educated professionals, who help shape the character of the city.

Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of West Lafayette spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 17.02 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the city are less than they would otherwise be.

Many people in West Lafayette take advantage of public transportation to get around. In fact, for the size of the city, the number of people who use the bus to commute to work is quite high. This helps to fill a need among West Lafayette citizens for affordable transportation.

Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to West Lafayette, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. West Lafayette is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 71.20% 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 Lafayette in 2022 was $21,559, which is low income relative to Indiana and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $86,236 for a family of four. However, West Lafayette contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. West Lafayette also has one of the higher rates of people living in poverty in the nation, with 39.18% of its population below the federal poverty line.

West Lafayette is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call West Lafayette home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of West Lafayette residents report their race to be White, followed by Asian. Important ancestries of people in West Lafayette include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Polish.

Foreign born people are also an important part of West Lafayette's cultural character, accounting for 22.50% of the city’s population.

The most common language spoken in West Lafayette is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Langs. of India.