Jacksonville is a small town with a large college student population. Because of this, there is a real youthful, hip vibe to the place, and much of the life in the town is centered on the college. This has helped Jacksonville to buck the trend of other small towns that have suffered declining populations over the past 20 to 30 years. Spending by students, and faculty and staff jobs, are a big part of the local economy.
Being a small city, Jacksonville does not have a public transit system used by locals to get to and from work.
In terms of college education, Jacksonville is somewhat better educated than the 21.84% who have a 4-year degree or higher in the typical US community: 28.89% of adults 25 and older in the city have at least a bachelor's degree.
The per capita income in Jacksonville in 2022 was $24,334, which is lower middle income relative to Alabama, and low income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $97,336 for a family of four. However, Jacksonville contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Jacksonville is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Jacksonville home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Jacksonville residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Jacksonville include English, Irish, German, Scottish, and Scots-Irish.
The most common language spoken in Jacksonville is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Chinese.
