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Burbank vs Chicago

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (199.5× in Chicago) and size (94.3× in Chicago).

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Burbank, ILAn outdoors townIllinois · 28,739 people
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Chicago, ILA history townIllinois · 2,711,226 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

Chicago places higher on 15 of 23 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

Burbank and Chicago share a border

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

BurbankChicagoBurbankChicago
Burbank ↔ Chicago7.7 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
4,129 Burbank residents work in Chicago (32.5% of its workers)
Work & commute in Burbank →
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.

Burbank$2,230/mo
Typical home $316K (Zillow) · tax rate 2.17% · or rent about $1,265/mo · Housing →
Chicago$2,160/mo
Typical home $334K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.48% · or rent about $1,440/mo · Housing →

The difference: $70 a month, about $800 a year, between Burbank and Chicago.

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
BurbankChicago
Snow a year39″39″
January low20°F20°F
July high85°F85°F
Growing season (days)203d203d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)62nd47th
Outdoors & history
BurbankChicago
Conserved land3.7%8%
Settled19701837
National Register places—415
Archive photos318
Famous people born here—31
Community
BurbankChicago
Library hours a week67 hrs72 hrs
Colleges in town—41
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.

BurbankChicago
People
Population 28,739Lowest 2,711,226Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +1.8%Lowest +1.9%Highest
Median age 38.6±1.5Highest about the IL average 35.8±0.1Lowest 8% below IL
Kids under 18 24.5%±2.4Highest IL: 21.8% 19.4%±0.2Lowest IL: 21.8%
Age 65+ 15.9%±1.7Highest IL: 17% 13.8%±0.2Lowest IL: 17%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 15.6%Lowest IL: 37.8% 44.3%Highest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 4.8%±0.9Lowest IL: 6.3% 7.4%±0.2Highest IL: 6.3%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $80,116±$10kHighest 4% below IL $77,902±$907Lowest 7% below IL
Burbank and Chicago are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $275,700±$11kLowest 5% above IL $334,100±$2kHighest 27% above IL
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,265±$91Lowest about the IL average $1,440±$10Highest 13% above IL
Property taxmedian, yearly $5,992Highest 13% above IL $4,943Lowest 7% below IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 60.6%±11.9Highest IL: 47.9% 48.3%±0.8Lowest IL: 47.9%
Burbank and Chicago are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 12.9%Lowest IL: 11.8% 16.8%Highest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 80.9%Highest IL: 67.1% 46%Lowest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1965Highest 6 yrs older than IL 1953Lowest 18 yrs older than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 31 minLowest 13% above IL 33 minHighest 19% above IL
Work from home 6.9%±2Lowest IL: 15.9% 21%±0.4Highest IL: 15.9%
Work in townworking residents 4.6%Lowest 64.2%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.8 miHighest 7.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.36Lowest 1.22Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Chicago (33%)Evanston (1%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 33% work in ChicagoFew work in Burbank
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 3.7%Lowest 8%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 1.2 miLowest 239.4 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.3 miLowest 1.0 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 10Lowest 520Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 132Highest 114Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading —#275 of 384 in IL
School district —IDJJ Sch Dist 428 · Betty Shabazz Internl Chrtr Sch
High school in town —Lane Technical High School
Students per teacherat that high school — 16.6
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.

Burbank neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Burbank’s Town Square.

Chicago neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Chicago’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Burbank

Towns like Burbank

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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