Wahpeton 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 Wahpeton 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.
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 15.95 minutes getting to work every day.
As is often the case in a small city, Wahpeton doesn't have a public transportation system that people use for their commute.
The population of Wahpeton overall has a level of education that is slightly above the US average for all US cities and towns of 21.84%. Of adults 25 and older in Wahpeton, 22.76% have at least a bachelor's degree.
The per capita income in Wahpeton in 2022 was $30,451, which is low income relative to North Dakota, and middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $121,804 for a family of four. However, Wahpeton contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
The people who call Wahpeton home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Wahpeton residents report their race to be White, followed by Native American. Important ancestries of people in Wahpeton include German, Norwegian, Irish, English, and Russian.
The most common language spoken in Wahpeton is English. Other important languages spoken here include Slavic languages and Italian.
