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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Veterans' benefits — pension, VA disability, GI Bill — stretch farther in some cities. We ranked 5 cities in Illinois on cost, state tax burden, and healthcare. Joliet leads with index 91 and 4.95% state tax.
#1 Ranked: Joliet — cost index 91, rent $1,559/mo, income $88,026
Joliet: high income, low cost — a rare combo
Veteran scoring: cost index 91, state tax 4.95%, healthcare index 98 — preserving earned benefits
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
Veterans' benefits — pension, VA disability, GI Bill — stretch farther in some cities. We ranked 5 cities in Illinois on cost, state tax burden, and healthcare. Joliet leads with index 91 and 4.95% state tax.
What does daily life actually cost in Joliet? Start with the 21% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Housing (index 91) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 98) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $88,026 and homes at $255,981 round out a profile that ranks #1 for clear reasons. Solidly above average.
With that foundation in place: Illinois — Chicago's premium versus downstate bargains. The 5 cities we track here average a cost index of 104 and median income of $91,148. It's a clear buyer's market compared to national norms. The typical rent runs $1,779/month, which is $116 less than the national median.
If you're ready to act on this, three things to do next: 1) Click into the city pages for the top 3 and check rent trends — direction matters more than the snapshot. 2) Run your income through the salary calculator for a personalized cost comparison. 3) Compare your top two picks head-to-head on our comparison page. The data is here; the decision is yours.
Joliet earns above the national median ($88,026 vs $80,367) while keeping costs below average (index 91 vs 111). That combination is exceptionally rare — only 40 of 288 cities share it.
Rent in #1-ranked Joliet has increased from $1,496 to $1,559/mo over the past 12 months — a 4% increase. Rising costs may erode its top ranking over time.
150,489 residents · Illinois
Dive into Joliet's numbers: cost index 91 (20 points below national average), rent $1,559/month, income $88,026, and a home price of $255,981. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Housing is the cheapest category at 91, while Healthcare runs 98. With 150,489 residents, it balances mid-size city convenience with manageable costs.
146,120 residents · Illinois
Here's Rockford by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 67. Rent: $1,151/month. Income: $53,328/year. Home price: $172,610. Population: 146,120. The strongest category is Housing at 67; the most expensive is Healthcare at 93. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $8,928 per year vs. the national median. This is where the math gets real for actual people.
113,310 residents · Illinois
A closer look at Elgin: the cost index of 101 breaks down to a Healthcare index of 100 (strongest category) and a Housing index of 101 (weakest). And in most cases, median rent is $1,736/month — 8% below the national median — while household income sits at $88,316, meaning locals spend about 24% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
2,664,452 residents · Illinois
Chicago earns its position at #4 through a combination that's hard to replicate. The 134 cost index sits 23 points above the national baseline, and the $75,134 median income means purchasing power here is partially offset by higher costs. Homes list at $312,457 — $154,913 below the national median — a genuine ownership opportunity. On the cost side, Healthcare leads the way at 107, while Housing trails at 134.
150,245 residents · Illinois
The #5 spot goes to Naperville, and the breakdown explains why. And more often than not, renters here pay $2,157/month — costing renters $3,144 more per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Healthcare is the standout at index 105, keeping costs manageable. The weak spot? Housing at 126. At a 17% rent-to-income ratio, there's genuine breathing room in the average household budget.
Joliet ranks #1 in Illinois for this analysis with a cost index of 91 and median income of $88,026.
Joliet scores highest for military veterans due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,559/mo, and above-average median income of $88,026.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
Joliet (ranked #1) has a cost index of 91 and rent of $1,559/mo, while Naperville (ranked #5) has a cost index of 126 and rent of $2,157/mo — a 35-point difference in cost of living.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Joliet is $1,559/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $336 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Joliet is $255,981, which is 2.9× the local median income. That's within the standard 3.5× affordability rule for most local earners. The national median home price is $467,370.
Illinois has a 4.95% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.83%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.73%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.