De SotoIL
A town of 1,388, settled in 1854.
Is De Soto a good place to live?
De Soto’s weakest subject grade is a D for hazard risk. On hazard risk, just 46 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns do worse. De Soto’s average trip to work is 17 minutes, where Illinois’ towns sit at 26 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. On civic life, just 99 of Illinois’ 1,240 towns do worse. De Soto has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
1,388 people, and everyone knows the way
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
How De Soto grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far De Soto is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to De Soto: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in De Soto, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in De Soto.
De Soto stands out in Illinois and nationally: a smaller share of its households own their home
47% of De Soto households own their home, against 75% in Illinois’ towns and 73% across U.S. towns. Typical home values rose 13% in the year to September 2026. The median rent in De Soto is $832 a month.
| De Soto | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 47% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $832 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Very high risk in De Soto, with earthquakes at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 84% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
With 0.2 jobs for every working resident, most of De Soto’s workers commute out
Most working residents leave De Soto for work: only 3% work in town. 16% of De Soto residents live below the poverty line. Jobs based in De Soto fell to 89 in 2023, 61 fewer than in 2013.
| De Soto | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 16% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $63,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.2% | 8.3% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
A larger share of adults report frequent mental distress in De Soto than in most of Illinois or the rest of the country
20% of adults report frequent mental distress in De Soto. De Soto beats the Illinois average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 10. 36% of adults feel lonely in De Soto.
| De Soto | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 35% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 33% | 33% |
| What stands out | De Soto | IL |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.2% | 10.3% |
| More smokers | 17.7% | 12.1% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 6.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Four seasons and hot summers in De Soto
De Soto has chilly winters and warm summers. De Soto’s July high is 89°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. De Soto - Recreation Complex | — | 10 |
| 2. Senior Citizens Park & Gazebo | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about De Soto
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of De Soto
About 6 of every 100 De Soto residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
De Soto has shrunk 13% since 2010
1,590 counted in 2010 and 1,407 in 2020; an estimated 1,388 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
About De Soto
Village in Jackson County, Illinois, United States
De Soto is a village in Jackson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,407 at the 2020 census. It is named for Hernando de Soto, the discoverer of the Mississippi River.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1854
- Area
- 0.9 sq mi
- ZIP code
- 62924
Questions about De Soto
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is De Soto, IL expensive?
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.