Best Counties To Live In Illinois [2022]: Rankings Based on Crime, Cost Of Living, and Real Estate

Some of you might be asking yourself, at this very moment: is Illinois a good place?

The answer is unequivocally yes… if you know where to locate the best places to live in Illinois.

Lucky for you, we’re here to help you identify the best counties to live in the Prairie State based on the most recently available data from the Census. And this isn’t our first rodeo — we’ve been helping people find the best places to live in America for years.

So, the question becomes, if you wanted to relocate to the best part of Illinois, where would you go? To answer that we looked at crime, cost of living, and demographic data for all 102 counties in the state.

After the analytic dust settled, we identified the 10 best counties to live in Prairie State for 2022.

The 10 Best Counties To Live In Illinois For 2022

Monroe County is the county to be when it comes to living the good life in Illinois. And you might want to avoid Alexander County if you can — at least according to the data.

So if you’re thinking of making the move Illinois, we’ve got you covered. Keep on reading for a detailed methodology.

Or, check out the best places to live in Illinois and the cheapest places to live in Illinois.

The Best Counties To Live In Illinois For 2022

1. Monroe County

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Columbia

Population: 34,444
Median Income: $89,648.0 (6th best)
Median Home Price: $220,600.0 (8th best)
Unemployment Rate: 2.4% (3rd best)
More on Monroe County: Photos | Data

2. Menard County

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Petersburg

Population: 12,261
Median Income: $77,550.0 (8th best)
Median Home Price: $151,900.0 (17th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.9% (48th best)
More on Menard County: Photos | Data

3. Piatt County

Source: Wikipedia User Dual Freq | GFDL

Biggest Place: Monticello

Population: 16,412
Median Income: $73,668.0 (11th best)
Median Home Price: $143,000.0 (23rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 3.7% (20th best)
More on Piatt County: Photos | Data

4. Grundy County

Biggest Place: Morris

Population: 50,798
Median Income: $75,767.0 (9th best)
Median Home Price: $199,800.0 (9th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.4% (38th best)
More on Grundy County: Photos | Data

5. Kendall County

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Aurora

Population: 127,583
Median Income: $96,854.0 (best)
Median Home Price: $243,700.0 (5th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.1% (27th best)
More on Kendall County: Photos | Data

6. Putnam County

Biggest Place: Granville

Population: 5,720
Median Income: $64,694.0 (19th best)
Median Home Price: $134,800.0 (26th best)
Unemployment Rate: 2.7% (6th best)
More on Putnam County: Data

7. Mchenry County

Source: Public domain

Biggest Place: Crystal Lake

Population: 307,291
Median Income: $90,014.0 (5th best)
Median Home Price: $234,000.0 (7th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.7% (45th best)
More on Mchenry County: Photos | Data

8. Calhoun County

Source: Public Domain

Biggest Place: Hardin

Population: 4,782
Median Income: $66,602.0 (17th best)
Median Home Price: $131,800.0 (28th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.4% (39th best)
More on Calhoun County: Data

9. Jersey County

Source: Wikipedia User Scottinalton | CC BY-SA 3.0

Biggest Place: Jerseyville

Population: 21,776
Median Income: $67,845.0 (15th best)
Median Home Price: $148,800.0 (20th best)
Unemployment Rate: 4.3% (3best)
More on Jersey County: Photos | Data

10. Washington County

Source: Wikipedia User Jon Platek | CC BY-SA 3.0

Biggest Place: Centralia

Population: 13,967
Median Income: $64,390.0 (20th best)
Median Home Price: $117,400.0 (39th best)
Unemployment Rate: 5.2% (56th best)
More on Washington County: Photos | Data

Methodology: How do you determine which Illinois county is the best?

To give you the best county in Illinois, we have to look at a handful of metrics that signal the quality of a place. To do that, we need to make some assumptions about what’s a “best county” and what isn’t. And, for reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, don’t take this analysis to court.

With that in mind, we went to two of the best sources of data on the internet; the American Community Survey data and FBI Crime data for the most recent time period.

We paid particular attention to:

Violent Crime Rates
Property Crime Rates
Median Home Values
Median Income
Unemployment Rates
Adult Education Levels
Health Insurance Coverage
Poverty Rates

Cheapest Places To Live In Illinois

We then ranked each county in Illinois across each of the criteria from one to 102, with one being the best.

Taking the average rank across all criteria, we created a quality of life score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Best County To Live In Illinois”.

The result is some of the safest, quiet, and best counties to raise a family in the Prairie State.

Read on to see why Monroe County is the best county, while Alexander County is probably in contention for being the worst county in Illinois.

Summary: The Best Counties In Illinois To Call Home For 2018

It turns out living in Illinois can vary from one part of the state to the next — who woulda thought?

But now you the know the really good parts and the parts to avoid and that’s why you came here to learn at the end of the day. And for that, you are welcome.

Here’s a look at the worst counties in Illinois according to the data:

Alexander County
Saline County
Marion County

For more Illinois reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Counties In Illinois

County	Rank	Population	Median Income	Median Home Price
Monroe County	1	34,444	$89,648.0	$220,600.0
Menard County	2	12,261	$77,550.0	$151,900.0
Piatt County	3	16,412	$73,668.0	$143,000.0
Grundy County	4	50,798	$75,767.0	$199,800.0
Kendall County	5	127,583	$96,854.0	$243,700.0
Putnam County	6	5,720	$64,694.0	$134,800.0
Mchenry County	7	307,291	$90,014.0	$234,000.0
Calhoun County	8	4,782	$66,602.0	$131,800.0
Jersey County	9	21,776	$67,845.0	$148,800.0
Washington County	10	13,967	$64,390.0	$117,400.0
Woodford County	11	38,503	$74,777.0	$170,800.0
Mercer County	12	15,503	$57,182.0	$111,000.0
Jo Daviess County	13	21,429	$59,223.0	$156,300.0
Tazewell County	14	132,524	$66,220.0	$142,300.0
Mclean County	15	172,164	$68,037.0	$166,400.0
Dupage County	16	926,005	$94,930.0	$315,600.0
Clark County	17	15,602	$59,481.0	$94,900.0
Cumberland County	18	10,787	$59,271.0	$106,300.0
Shelby County	19	21,623	$59,134.0	$105,500.0
Henry County	20	49,032	$60,000.0	$122,200.0
Will County	21	689,704	$90,800.0	$239,400.0
Effingham County	22	34,151	$59,932.0	$151,700.0
Scott County	23	4,982	$59,352.0	$91,800.0
Logan County	24	28,818	$58,122.0	$107,600.0
Lee County	25	34,204	$59,986.0	$122,600.0
De Witt County	26	15,764	$57,727.0	$103,600.0
Marshall County	27	11,562	$57,303.0	$105,700.0
Clinton County	28	37,549	$67,179.0	$145,700.0
Kane County	29	531,756	$83,374.0	$245,500.0
Lake County	30	699,682	$92,654.0	$271,700.0
Hancock County	31	17,820	$55,818.0	$88,500.0
Lasalle County	32	108,998	$60,069.0	$130,600.0
Bond County	33	16,520	$53,568.0	$116,900.0
Bureau County	34	32,878	$55,549.0	$103,900.0
Whiteside County	35	55,583	$57,172.0	$107,800.0
Adams County	36	65,670	$55,052.0	$130,500.0
Livingston County	37	35,757	$58,676.0	$114,000.0
Boone County	38	53,293	$70,396.0	$160,600.0
Madison County	39	264,403	$64,045.0	$138,500.0
Sangamon County	40	195,963	$61,743.0	$144,100.0
Douglas County	41	19,551	$59,620.0	$120,500.0
Christian County	42	32,705	$52,120.0	$93,200.0
Greene County	43	12,988	$51,746.0	$83,400.0
Moultrie County	44	14,557	$64,033.0	$108,300.0
Champaign County	45	210,006	$53,936.0	$166,600.0
Randolph County	46	31,973	$55,319.0	$110,900.0
Wabash County	47	11,390	$48,878.0	$80,900.0
Henderson County	48	6,737	$55,759.0	$85,800.0
Richland County	49	15,677	$55,032.0	$88,800.0
Morgan County	50	34,012	$53,002.0	$109,700.0
Ogle County	51	50,793	$63,643.0	$150,400.0
Dekalb County	52	104,588	$62,353.0	$182,300.0
Macoupin County	53	45,243	$56,264.0	$102,900.0
Cook County	54	5,169,517	$67,886.0	$255,500.0
Jasper County	55	9,547	$55,911.0	$99,900.0
Brown County	56	6,599	$60,694.0	$99,800.0
Johnson County	57	12,391	$55,363.0	$117,500.0
Ford County	58	13,155	$50,582.0	$98,600.0
Williamson County	59	66,929	$52,076.0	$120,900.0
Kankakee County	60	109,924	$59,370.0	$152,800.0
Iroquois County	61	27,437	$54,445.0	$107,300.0
St. Clair County	62	261,186	$57,473.0	$134,800.0
Montgomery County	63	28,598	$54,886.0	$90,300.0
Stark County	64	5,393	$53,828.0	$87,500.0
Stephenson County	65	44,683	$50,466.0	$99,600.0
Perry County	66	21,092	$51,616.0	$85,700.0
Carroll County	67	14,398	$52,813.0	$102,200.0
Edgar County	68	17,272	$48,543.0	$82,800.0
Rock Island County	69	142,801	$55,980.0	$123,100.0
Winnebago County	70	283,635	$55,310.0	$121,400.0
Pike County	71	15,571	$46,605.0	$83,500.0
Hamilton County	72	8,151	$55,977.0	$104,900.0
Warren County	73	16,981	$54,291.0	$86,900.0
Crawford County	74	18,833	$50,968.0	$94,100.0
Clay County	75	13,217	$52,167.0	$84,400.0
Macon County	76	104,688	$53,725.0	$103,100.0
Fulton County	77	34,654	$52,243.0	$92,600.0
Peoria County	78	181,111	$55,729.0	$130,700.0
Pope County	79	4,177	$43,140.0	$114,600.0
Coles County	80	51,065	$46,411.0	$105,100.0
Wayne County	81	16,309	$50,205.0	$89,000.0
Cass County	82	12,324	$53,899.0	$81,700.0
Franklin County	83	38,688	$43,671.0	$77,000.0
Edwards County	84	6,431	$53,801.0	$81,000.0
Gallatin County	85	4,983	$43,092.0	$76,400.0
Mason County	86	13,486	$50,883.0	$87,600.0
Union County	87	16,829	$51,655.0	$110,500.0
Knox County	88	50,052	$44,464.0	$83,700.0
Mcdonough County	89	30,107	$43,591.0	$91,700.0
Massac County	90	14,041	$51,195.0	$88,500.0
Jackson County	91	57,517	$39,689.0	$114,300.0
Jefferson County	92	37,774	$51,662.0	$97,100.0
Lawrence County	93	15,830	$53,087.0	$80,500.0
Schuyler County	94	6,897	$51,376.0	$96,900.0
Fayette County	95	21,418	$45,634.0	$93,200.0
White County	96	13,712	$48,303.0	$75,400.0
Hardin County	97	3,890	$50,847.0	$77,500.0
Vermilion County	98	76,704	$46,842.0	$80,900.0
Pulaski County	99	5,414	$37,308.0	$61,300.0
Marion County	100	37,524	$49,925.0	$81,600.0

Download The Entire Illinois Ranking Data

Editor’s Note: We updated this article for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the best counties to live in Illinois.