A free resource by NextGen Coastal — monthly OC rental market intelligence
State data • Updated March 2026

Illinois rent: top & bottom cities

Median ZORI rent across Illinois cities, statewide macro overlay, plus the most-expensive and most-affordable cities side by side. Live from the NGP-Rental-Data warehouse.

Illinois at a glance

$1,826Median city rent (ZORI)
5.0%Unemployment
1,005Permits / month
20Cities w/ rent data

Unemployment from FRED state series. Permits from Census BPS. Median = median across all Illinois cities with current ZORI data. See methodology.

Most expensive & most affordable

Top 10 by rent

CityRent (ZORI)YoY
Wilmette $3,667
Niles $3,087
Highland Park $2,952 +8.6%
Northbrook $2,887 +12.5%
Lake Zurich $2,850
Huntley $2,823
Plainfield $2,759 +5.1%
Libertyville $2,686
Deerfield $2,670
Park Ridge $2,602

Top 10 most affordable (pop ≥ 50k)

CityRent (ZORI)YoY
Decatur $998 +6.3%
Peoria $1,125 +2.6%
Springfield $1,158 +5.9%
Rockford $1,207 +7.3%
Bloomington $1,353 +3.6%
Cicero $1,361 +3.0%
Champaign $1,378 +5.8%
Berwyn $1,392 +4.7%
Normal $1,401 +3.2%
Joliet $1,520 +6.8%

Top 5 cities — overlaid rent trajectory

ZORI rent index — top 5 Illinois cities

Monthly Zillow ZORI rent index. Data updates monthly. Source: methodology.

Compare cities in Illinois

Pick any 2-4 cities for a side-by-side view:

Wilmette vs Niles vs Highland Park · Pick your own →