In addition, Champaign 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 Champaign culture, lifestyle and entertainment options. Champaign really pulses to the beat of the academic calendar. In Champaign 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 Champaign. 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. Champaign benefits directly from this.
Not only is Champaign 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 Champaign a good place to live without being in a really big city, with opportunities for friendships and fun with others like themselves.
Residents of the city have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 16.67 minutes getting to work every day.
For the size of the city, public transportation in Champaign is quite heavily used. Mostly, people who use it for their daily commute are taking the bus. For Champaign, the benefits are reduced air pollution and congestion on the highways.
Do you like to read, write and learn? If you move to Champaign, you'll likely find that many of your neighbors like to as well. Champaign is one of the more educated communities in America, with a full 51.76% 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 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.
Foreign born people are also an important part of Champaign's cultural character, accounting for 17.01% of the city’s population.
The most common language spoken in Champaign is English. Other important languages spoken here include Chinese and Spanish.
