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Benld vs Mount Clare

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: street grid (11.3× in Benld) and jobs per worker (7.1× in Mount Clare).

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Benld, ILHomes around $68KIllinois · 1,495 people
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Mount Clare, ILA small town of 292Illinois · 292 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

BenldHomes around $68K
Housing$68K typical home77% below the IL typical home Health74% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates All about Benld →
Mount ClareA small town of 292
Quiet strengthsMount Clare doesn’t stand out on the data we haveNeighbors can tell you what the numbers miss.
All about Mount Clare →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Street grid11.3×
Benld has the more walkable street grid
Benld 137Mount Clare 12.1
Jobs per worker7.1×
Mount Clare is more of a job hub
Mount Clare 1.06Benld 0.15
Size5.1×
Benld is the bigger place
Benld 1,495Mount Clare 292
Age 65++19.5 pts
Mount Clare has more people 65 and up
Mount Clare 42.8%Benld 23.3%
Average commute10 min
Benld has the shorter commute
Mount Clare 36 minBenld 26 min
Homeowners+11.6 pts renters
Benld has more renters
Mount Clare 80.2%Benld 68.6%
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $210 more a month in Mount Clare

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Benld$440/mo
Typical home $68K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.48% · or rent about $826/mo · Housing →
Mount Clare$650/mo
Typical home $103K (Census) · tax rate 1.28% · or rent about $596/mo · Housing →

The difference: $210 a month, about $2,500 a year, between Mount Clare and Benld.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Where they are

Benld and Mount Clare share a border

Straight-line miles between town centers.

BenldMount ClareBenldMount Clare
Benld ↔ Mount Clare1.7 miles apart · They share a border
Report cards

Grades and rankings, side by side

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Illinois ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Health
CBenldHealthier than 26% of U.S. towns –Mount ClareNot graded
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
BenldMount Clare
Snow a year14″14″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)37th53rd
Community
BenldMount Clare
Library hours a week36 hrs—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

BenldMount Clare
People
Population 1,495Highest 292Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -5.9% —
Median age 45.4±8.1Lowest 16% above IL 59.5±6.9Highest 53% above IL
Mount Clare and Benld are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 15.1%±5Highest IL: 21.8% 11.6%±12.1Lowest IL: 21.8%
Benld and Mount Clare are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 23.3%±3.9Lowest IL: 17% 42.8%±8.1Highest IL: 17%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 10.8%Lowest IL: 37.8% 14.2%Highest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 1.9%±1.7Highest IL: 6.3% 0%±6.3Lowest IL: 6.3%
Benld and Mount Clare are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $47,850±$7kLowest 43% below IL $66,875±$27kHighest 20% below IL
Mount Clare and Benld are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $82,400±$7kLowest 69% below IL $102,500±$27kHighest 61% below IL
Mount Clare and Benld are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $826±$151Highest 35% below IL $596±$122Lowest 53% below IL
Benld and Mount Clare are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,222Lowest 77% below IL $1,313Highest 75% below IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 44.1%±20Lowest IL: 47.9% 52.4%±58.2Highest IL: 47.9%
Mount Clare and Benld are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 15.4%Lowest IL: 11.8% 20.1%Highest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 68.6%Lowest IL: 67.1% 80.2%Highest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1944Lowest 27 yrs older than IL 1953Highest 18 yrs older than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 26 minLowest 8% below IL 36 minHighest 29% above IL
Work from home 5.1%±3.7Highest IL: 15.9% 4.3%±7.5Lowest IL: 15.9%
Benld and Mount Clare are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 0.8% 0.8%
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 25.8 mi 25.8 mi
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.15Lowest 1.06Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Litchfield (7%)Edwardsville (7%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Mount ClareFew work in Benld
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 7.7%Highest 0.1%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.2 miHighest 0.0 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.2 miHighest 0.0 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 137Highest 12.1Lowest
Illinois average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Benld neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Benld’s Town Square.

Mount Clare neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mount Clare’s Town Square.

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Bordering Benld

C
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Cahokia Township3,128 people · $97K homes
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Gillespie Township3,611 people · $98K homes

Towns like Benld

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Sheldon Township1,285 people · $83K homes
S
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Sheldon1,195 people · $78K homes
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Hanover Township1,106 people · $106K homes
G
+ Compare
Grandview1,243 people · $72K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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