Cheney is a somewhat small city located in the state of Washington. With a population of 12,747 people and four associated neighborhoods, Cheney is the 76th largest community in Washington.

A relatively large number of people in Cheney telecommute to their jobs. Overall, about 8.68% of the workforce works from home. While this may seem like a small number, as a fraction of the total workforce it ranks among the highest in the country. 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.

Cheney 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 Cheney 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.

Cheney, while not large, also appears to be attractive to some younger, educated professionals, who help shape the character of the city.

Despite the fact that it is a small city, Cheney has quite a few people who take public transportation – mostly the bus - for their daily commute to work. This helps to fill a real need in the city for affordable transportation.

Cheney is one of the most well-educated cities in the nation. 41.65% of adults in Cheney have at least a bachelor's degree. Compare that to the average community in America, which has just 21.84% with a bachelor's degree or higher.

The per capita income in Cheney in 2022 was $24,693, which is low income relative to Washington, and lower middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $98,772 for a family of four. However, Cheney contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Cheney also has one of the higher rates of people living in poverty in the nation, with 33.29% of its population below the federal poverty line.

Cheney is a very ethnically-diverse city. The people who call Cheney home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Cheney residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Cheney also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 11.62% of the city’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Cheney include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Norwegian.

The most common language spoken in Cheney is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Arabic.