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Chicago vs Leyden Township

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (19.2× in Chicago) and size (29.8× in Chicago).

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Chicago, ILA history townIllinois · 2,711,226 people
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Leyden Township, ILAn outdoors townCook County · 90,973 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 · 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.

Chicago$2,160/mo
Typical home $334K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.48% · or rent about $1,440/mo · Housing →
Leyden Township$2,040/mo
Typical home $288K (Census) · tax rate 2.20% · or rent about $1,246/mo · Housing →

The difference: $120 a month, about $1,500 a year, between Chicago and Leyden Township.

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

Chicago and Leyden Township share a border

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

ChicagoLeyden TownshipChicagoLeyden Township
Chicago ↔ Leyden Township12 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
12,077 Leyden Township residents work in Chicago (28.4% of its workers)
Work & commute in Leyden Township →
Report cards

Chicago places higher on 11 of 20 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.

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
ChicagoLeyden Township
Snow a year39″38″
January low20°F19°F
July high85°F85°F
Growing season (days)203d193d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)47th57th
Outdoors & history
ChicagoLeyden Township
Conserved land8%1.4%
Settled1837—
National Register places415—
Archive photos183
Famous people born here37—
Community
ChicagoLeyden Township
Library hours a week72 hrs67 hrs
Colleges in town41—
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined01

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.

ChicagoLeyden Township
People
Population 2,711,226Highest 90,973Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +1.9%Highest +0.2%Lowest
Median age 35.8±0.1Lowest 8% below IL 39.2±1.1Highest about the IL average
Kids under 18 19.4%±0.2Lowest IL: 21.8% 21.8%±1.4Highest IL: 21.8%
Age 65+ 13.8%±0.2Lowest IL: 17% 15.5%±1Highest IL: 17%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 44.3%Highest IL: 37.8% 25%Lowest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 7.4%±0.2Highest IL: 6.3% 5.2%±0.8Lowest IL: 6.3%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $77,902±$907Lowest 7% below IL $79,935±$5kHighest 4% below IL
Leyden Township and Chicago are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $334,100±$2kHighest 27% above IL $288,200±$6kLowest 9% above IL
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,440±$10Highest 13% above IL $1,246±$37Lowest about the IL average
Property taxmedian, yearly $4,943Lowest 7% below IL $6,344Highest 20% above IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 48.3%±0.8Highest IL: 47.9% 44.2%±4.9Lowest IL: 47.9%
Chicago and Leyden Township are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 16.8%Highest IL: 11.8% 8.2%Lowest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 46%Lowest IL: 67.1% 65.5%Highest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1953Lowest 18 yrs older than IL 1959Highest 12 yrs older than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 33 minHighest 19% above IL 29 minLowest 4% above IL
Work from home 21%±0.4Highest IL: 15.9% 9.9%±1.2Lowest IL: 15.9%
Work in townworking residents 64.2%Highest 13.3%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 7.3 miLowest 8.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 1.22Lowest 1.63Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Evanston (1%)Chicago (28%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Leyden Township28% work in Chicago
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 8%Highest 1.4%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 239.4 miHighest 12.5 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 1.0 miHighest 0.6 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 520Highest 37Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 114Highest 83.5Lowest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #275 of 384 in IL#248 of 384 in IL
School district IDJJ Sch Dist 428 · Betty Shabazz Internl Chrtr SchRegion 06 West Cook ISC 2 · Berkeley SD 87
High school in town Lane Technical High SchoolEast Leyden High School
Students per teacherat that high school 16.6Highest 14.9Lowest
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.

Chicago neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Chicago’s Town Square.

Leyden Township neighborsTown Square →
T Weaver · 1w

Leyden Living Perks

1 neighbor in Leyden Township can answer.

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Bordering Chicago

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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