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Compare towns

Wheaton vs Winfield

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (4.5× in Wheaton) and size (5.3× in Wheaton).

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Wheaton, ILAn outdoors townIllinois · 53,557 people
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Winfield, ILA regional job hubIllinois · 10,095 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 $860 more a month in Wheaton

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.

Wheaton$3,590/mo
Typical home $515K (Zillow) · tax rate 2.07% · or rent about $1,799/mo · Housing →
Winfield$2,730/mo
Typical home $386K (Census) · tax rate 2.19% · or rent about $1,493/mo · Housing →

The difference: $860 a month, about $10,300 a year, between Wheaton and Winfield.

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

Wheaton and Winfield share a border

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

WheatonWinfieldWheatonWinfield
Wheaton ↔ Winfield2.8 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
294 Winfield residents work in Wheaton (6.7% of its workers)
Work & commute in Winfield →
Report cards

Wheaton places higher on 11 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.

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
WheatonWinfield
Snow a year42″46″
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)43rd60th
Outdoors & history
WheatonWinfield
Trails8 mi2 mi
Conserved land7.4%16.5%
Settled18311921
National Register places6—
Archive photos—16
Famous people born here—21
Community
WheatonWinfield
Library hours a week68 hrs62 hrs
Colleges in town1—
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.

WheatonWinfield
People
Population 53,557Highest 10,095Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +2%Lowest +8.3%Highest
Median age 36.8±0.8Lowest 6% below IL 44±3.9Highest 13% above IL
Kids under 18 22%±1.4Highest IL: 21.8% 21.2%±3.5Lowest IL: 21.8%
Wheaton and Winfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 17.5%±1.1Lowest IL: 17% 21.9%±3.1Highest IL: 17%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 64.5%Highest IL: 37.8% 59.7%Lowest IL: 37.8%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 10.7%±0.9Highest IL: 6.3% 5.2%±1.3Lowest IL: 6.3%
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $120,008±$4kLowest 44% above IL $135,795±$20kHighest 63% above IL
Winfield and Wheaton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $455,700±$10kHighest 73% above IL $386,300±$17kLowest 47% above IL
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,799±$83Highest 41% above IL $1,493±$373Lowest 17% above IL
Wheaton and Winfield are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $9,443Highest 78% above IL $8,460Lowest 60% above IL
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 44%±5.3Lowest IL: 47.9% 46.2%±15.3Highest IL: 47.9%
Winfield and Wheaton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 5.6%Highest IL: 11.8% 3.2%Lowest IL: 11.8%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 71.7%Lowest IL: 67.1% 91.9%Highest IL: 67.1%
Typical home builtmedian year 1976Lowest 5 yrs newer than IL 1986Highest 15 yrs newer than IL
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 26 minLowest 8% below IL 29 minHighest 4% above IL
Work from home 25.7%±1.8Lowest IL: 15.9% 26.5%±4.9Highest IL: 15.9%
Winfield and Wheaton are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 11%Highest 2.5%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.8 miLowest 11.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.83Lowest 1.83Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Chicago (18%)Chicago (17%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Winfield7% work in Wheaton
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 7.4%Lowest 16.5%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 8.1 miHighest 1.8 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.7 miHighest 0.6 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 46Highest 18Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 105Highest 97.5Lowest
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.

Wheaton neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Wheaton’s Town Square.

Winfield neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Winfield’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Wheaton

Towns like Wheaton

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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