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Compare towns

Berkeley vs Melrose Park

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (3.8× in Melrose Park) and size (4.7× in Melrose Park).

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Berkeley, ILOne of the healthiest townsIllinois · 5,199 people
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Melrose Park, ILAn outdoors townIllinois · 24,549 people
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.

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.

★ What stands out · Report cards

Berkeley places higher on 13 of 21 IL lists

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.

Where they are

Berkeley and Melrose Park share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

BerkeleyMelrose ParkBerkeleyMelrose Park
Berkeley ↔ Melrose Park2.6 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
66 Berkeley residents work in Melrose Park (2.9% of its workers)
Work & commute in Berkeley →
Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

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.

Berkeley$2,270/mo
Typical home $309K (Zillow) · tax rate 2.52% · or rent about $1,434/mo · Housing →
Melrose Park$2,260/mo
Typical home $324K (Zillow) · tax rate 2.07% · or rent about $1,176/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

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.

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
BerkeleyMelrose Park
Snow a year42″42″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)47th63rd
Outdoors & history
BerkeleyMelrose Park
Trails0 mi1 mi
Conserved land1.3%1.7%
Archive photos1230
Community
BerkeleyMelrose Park
Library hours a week54 hrs42 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined11

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.

BerkeleyMelrose Park
People
Population 5,199Lowest 24,549Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +2.5%Highest -2.4%Lowest
Median age 33.6±5Lowest 14% below IL 37.3±2.1Highest 4% below IL
Melrose Park and Berkeley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 26.9%±9.3Highest IL: 21.8% 22.6%±2.7Lowest IL: 21.8%
Berkeley and Melrose Park are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 17%±5.2Highest IL: 17% 12.8%±2.1Lowest IL: 17%
Berkeley and Melrose Park are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 18.6%Highest IL: 37.8% 15%Lowest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.9%±2.1Lowest IL: 6.3% 4.8%±1.1Highest IL: 6.3%
Melrose Park and Berkeley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $85,823±$14kHighest about the IL average $66,189±$4kLowest 21% below IL
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $246,900±$21kLowest 6% below IL $275,800±$11kHighest 5% above IL
Melrose Park and Berkeley are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,434±$210Highest 13% above IL $1,176±$82Lowest 8% below IL
Berkeley and Melrose Park are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $6,224Highest 17% above IL $5,717Lowest 8% above IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 74.2%±55.1Highest IL: 47.9% 43%±6.4Lowest IL: 47.9%
Berkeley and Melrose Park are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 17.5%Highest IL: 11.8% 12.3%Lowest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 82%Highest IL: 67.1% 56.7%Lowest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1955Lowest 16 yrs older than IL 1956Highest 15 yrs older than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 28 minHighest about the IL average 27 minLowest about the IL average
Work from home 14.5%±9.5Highest IL: 15.9% 5.9%±1.9Lowest IL: 15.9%
Berkeley and Melrose Park are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 1.6%Lowest 10.1%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 9.8 miHighest 8.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.52Lowest 1.96Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Chicago (27%)Chicago (22%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 3% work in Melrose ParkFew work in Berkeley
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 1.3%Lowest 1.7%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 miLowest 0.5 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 miLowest 0.1 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Lowest 7Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 67.4Lowest 98.8Highest
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.

Berkeley neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Best View in Berkeley

1 neighbor in Berkeley can answer.

Melrose Park neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Life in Melrose Park

1 neighbor in Melrose Park can answer.

Add a town

Set another town beside Berkeley and Melrose Park

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Bordering Berkeley

Towns like Berkeley

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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