Canton 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 Canton 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.
For a small village, there is also a high proportion of single, often educated, people living in Canton. This is not typical for smaller communities in America, and adds a feeling of vibrancy to Canton.
One of the benefits of Canton is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 13.40 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.
The education level of Canton ranks among the highest in the nation. Of the 25-and-older adult population in Canton, 47.68% have at least a bachelor's degree. The typical US community has just 21.84% of its adults holding a bachelor's degree or graduate degree.
The per capita income in Canton in 2022 was $25,396, which is low income relative to New York, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $101,584 for a family of four. However, Canton contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Canton is a somewhat ethnically-diverse village. The people who call Canton home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Canton residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Canton include Irish, English, Italian, German, and Polish.
The most common language spoken in Canton is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and French.
