For those residing along the Nile, the main economic activity is farming. The men maintain the water canals and watering systems, and the plowing and hoeing. They mostly cultivate cotton, sugar cane, corn, dura, wheat, sesame and various fruits and vegetables. They also raise poultry. Boys or older women generally tend the flocks of sheep and goats, while the adults take care of larger animals such as camels.
Villages usually contain a few hundred inhabitants.
Houses are made from clay bricks. In the larger villages, the Bisharin live together with Ababda, in brick dwellings or in tents encircled within a brick wall. All villages have an area which is reserved for men and visitors. In each large Bisharin village there is a mosque which also serves as a public place for gathering and storing water. In the large village centers, women do clay work, making containers of raw or baked clay, either for personal use or for sale.