A lot of people in Paterson take the bus for their daily commute. For the size of the city, the number of people who use public transportation is quite high. For many people in Paterson, this fills their need for low-cost transportation.
The percentage of people in Paterson with college degrees is quite a bit lower than the national average for cities and towns of 21.84%: just 12.64% of people over 25 have a bachelor's degree or advanced degree.
The per capita income in Paterson in 2022 was $23,035, which is low income relative to New Jersey and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $92,140 for a family of four. However, Paterson contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Paterson is an extremely ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Paterson 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 Paterson, accounting for 63.05% of the city’s residents (people of Hispanic or Latino origin can be of any race). The greatest number of Paterson residents report their race to be Black or African-American, followed by White. Important ancestries of people in Paterson include African, Jamaican, Italian, Irish, and Jordanian.
Foreign born people are also an important part of Paterson's cultural character, accounting for 43.67% of the city’s population.
The most common language spoken in Paterson is Spanish. Other important languages spoken here include English and Arabic.
