Providence is a relatively large coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Rhode Island. With a population of 190,792 people and 42 associated neighborhoods, Providence is the largest community in Rhode Island. Much of the housing stock in Providence was built prior to World War II, making it one of the older and more historic cities in the country.

Also of interest is that Providence 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: 12.69% 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.

Providence is made interesting by being both a reasonably big city and having a major college student population: students here will find that the city provides a lot of amenities, culture, and opportunities for them. Providence is more than just a college town, however, though the thousands of students certainly are a major part of the character of the city, as well as a contributor to the local economy.

Not only is Providence a city with many college students, but it also retains many recent graduates who are looking to start new careers, shaping the character of the city into a place that is geared toward, and considered attractive to, many single, educated people. Many singles consider Providence a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.

One of the nice things about Providence is that it is nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Because of this, visitors and locals will often go to these areas to take in the scenery or to enjoy waterfront activities.

For the size of the city, public transportation in Providence is quite heavily used. Mostly, people who use it for their daily commute are taking the bus. For Providence, the benefits are reduced air pollution and congestion on the highways.

The population of Providence is very well educated relative to most cities and towns in the nation, where the average community has 21.84% of its adult population holding a 4-year degree or higher: 34.69% of adults in Providence have a bachelor's degree or even advanced degree.

The per capita income in Providence in 2022 was $36,694, which is low income relative to Rhode Island, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $146,776 for a family of four. However, Providence contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.

Providence is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Providence home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. People of Hispanic or Latino origin are the most prevalent group in Providence, accounting for 44.27% of the city’s residents (people of Hispanic or Latino origin can be of any race). The greatest number of Providence residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Providence include Irish, Italian, English, German, and French.

Providence also has a high percentage of its population that was born in another country: 32.81%.

The most common language spoken in Providence is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and French.