Portsmouth is a larger medium-sized coastal city (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Virginia. With a population of 96,482 people and 31 associated neighborhoods, Portsmouth is the 11th largest community in Virginia.Unlike some cities, Portsmouth isn’t mainly white- or blue-collar. Instead, the most prevalent occupations for people in Portsmouth are a mix of both white- and blue-collar jobs. Overall, Portsmouth is a city of professionals, sales and office workers, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Portsmouth who work in office and administrative support (12.32%), sales jobs (8.58%), and management occupations (7.99%). There are quite a few people in the armed forces living in Portsmouth, and when you visit or drive around town, you will see military people in and out of uniform, shopping, enjoying life, and being part of the community. Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 7.86% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. 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. Portsmouth is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities. The citizens of Portsmouth are slightly better educated than the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns, with 23.20% of adults in Portsmouth having a bachelor's degree or advanced degree. The per capita income in Portsmouth in 2022 was $32,915, which is middle income relative to Virginia and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $131,660 for a family of four. However, Portsmouth contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Portsmouth is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Portsmouth home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Portsmouth residents report their race to be Black or African-American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Portsmouth include English, Irish, German, African, and Italian. The most common language spoken in Portsmouth is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Tagalog.
