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Compare towns

Lyons vs Riverside

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: household income (2.2× in Riverside) and home values (+91% in Riverside).

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Lyons, ILAn outdoors townIllinois · 10,339 people
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Riverside, ILHomes around $566KIllinois · 9,039 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 $2,070 more a month in Riverside

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.

Lyons$1,850/mo
Typical home $257K (Census) · tax rate 2.34% · or rent about $1,198/mo · Housing →
Riverside$3,920/mo
Typical home $566K (Zillow) · tax rate 2.04%+ · or rent about $1,484/mo · Housing →

The difference: $2,070 a month, about $24,900 a year, between Riverside and Lyons.

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; “+” means the Census top-codes that town’s bill at $10,000, so its real rate is higher.

Report cards

Riverside places higher on 15 of 22 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

Lyons and Riverside share a border

Straight-line miles between town centers.

LyonsRiversideLyonsRiverside
Lyons ↔ Riverside1.3 miles apart · They share a border
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
LyonsRiverside
Snow a year42″42″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)80th72nd
Outdoors & history
LyonsRiverside
Trails2 mi1 mi
Conserved land1.2%5.3%
Settled18881875
National Register places26
Archive photos527
Famous people born here215
Community
LyonsRiverside
Library hours a week55 hrs65 hrs
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.

LyonsRiverside
People
Population 10,339Highest 9,039Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +0.8%Lowest +4.8%Highest
Median age 40.8±3.2Lowest 5% above IL 42±4.9Highest 8% above IL
Riverside and Lyons are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 22.2%±4.7Lowest IL: 21.8% 26.1%±5.1Highest IL: 21.8%
Riverside and Lyons are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 18.8%±4.9Lowest IL: 17% 19.7%±4.3Highest IL: 17%
Riverside and Lyons are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 18.4%Lowest IL: 37.8% 72.5%Highest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 6.4%±2.3Highest IL: 6.3% 2.6%±1Lowest IL: 6.3%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $70,993±$13kLowest 15% below IL $153,686±$19kHighest 84% above IL
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $257,300±$25kLowest about the IL average $491,400±$32kHighest 87% above IL
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,198±$90Lowest 6% below IL $1,484±$214Highest 16% above IL
Riverside and Lyons are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $6,016Lowest 14% above IL $10,000+Highest at least 89% above IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 50.7%±9.6Highest IL: 47.9% 16.5%±15.2Lowest IL: 47.9%
Below poverty line 14%Highest IL: 11.8% 3.3%Lowest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 64.2%Lowest IL: 67.1% 84.8%Highest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1959Highest 12 yrs older than IL 1938Lowest 33 yrs older than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 28 minLowest about the IL average 33 minHighest 17% above IL
Work from home 19.2%±6.6Lowest IL: 15.9% 28.3%±6.6Highest IL: 15.9%
Riverside and Lyons are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 3.9% 3.9%
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.3 miHighest 9.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.63Highest 0.32Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Chicago (28%)Chicago (39%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in RiversideFew work in Lyons
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 1.2%Lowest 5.3%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 2.0 miHighest 1.2 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.9 miHighest 0.6 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 10Highest 7Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 87.5Lowest 115Highest
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.

Lyons neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Lyons’s Town Square.

Riverside neighborsTown Square →

1 neighbor in Riverside can answer.

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Bordering Lyons

Towns like Lyons

Not sure which town to add? Find your place ranks Illinois towns on what matters to you.Find your place →

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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