Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Harvey earns a D, 751st of 767 graded towns in Illinois, mostly because of safety and schools. It reports more crime per resident than 94% of U.S. towns, including 177 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Its public schools trail 93% of Illinois towns on state tests and graduation. What it does well: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 98% of U.S. towns. Harvey’s violent crime rate is 9 per 1,000 residents, against 1 in Illinois’ towns and 1.6 across U.S. towns. Only 25 of Illinois’ 1,284 towns score lower on health. Harvey's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 96% of U.S. towns.
Where Harvey beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
25,282 counted in 2010 and 20,324 in 2020; an estimated 19,849 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Harvey is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D for safety (better than 6%), so the D overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 5,395 in 1900, a peak of 35,810 in 1980, 20,324 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1890 and 7 maps from 1892 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Harvey. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw13 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw24 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw15 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw19 mi MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a yearSoldier Field: Photo by Joon Han Contact: [email protected], CC BY-SA 3.0 · Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · Wrigley Field: Ryan Dickey, CC BY 2.0 · Rate Field: User Enoch Lai on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 · United Center: User:JeremyA, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Art Institute of Chicago: ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Harvey, 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.
Ordered by what stands out in Harvey.
Harvey is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it reports violent crime at 3 times the Illinois rate and carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Illinois (mostly inland flooding).
At 1.2 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income, the typical home (about $107K) costs less against local pay than in 99% of Illinois towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living. 61% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 47.9% across Illinois.
The typical Harvey home is worth about $107,000, up 3% in a year, 64% below the Illinois typical home. 58% of households own their home in Harvey.
| Harvey | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 58% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $960 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Violent crime runs at 9 per 1,000 residents, 3 times the Illinois rate; the Safety Grade counts each violent crime four times, so this weighs most on its D. Each of the 4 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from East Hazel Crest (D) to Phoenix (B−).
Harvey’s property crime rate is 22.8 per 1,000 residents. Harvey reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 94% report less.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Against the 3,169 U.S. towns with household incomes like Harvey’s, it is less healthy than 65%, so its D isn’t only a matter of income.
32% of Harvey adults say their health is fair or poor. Only 2 of the 767 Illinois towns we compare have a higher share of adults who feel lonely than Harvey. 16% of Harvey adults report frequent physical distress.
| Harvey | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 18% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 11% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 45% | 35% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 33% |
| What stands out | Harvey | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.6% | 7.6% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 14.5% | 17.8% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 20.8% | 7.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of Illinois towns, with expected losses of about $779 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on. 381 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 36 properties have flooded more than once.
The FEMA risk score in Harvey is 85 of 100. Since 1979, 381 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Harvey.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1.5 miles of trail in 12 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Kickapoo Woods, at 34 acres.
| Harvey | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.5% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Briggs-Ellis Park | 0.3 mi | 9 |
| 2. Taft Park | 0.3 mi | 7 |
| 3. Kickapoo Woods | — | 34 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Harvey has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 17° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Harvey has about as many jobs (6,377) as working residents, but only 354 people both live and work here. Jobs based here fell from 9,083 in 2013 to 6,377.
Since 2013, Harvey has lost 2,706 jobs, to 6,377 in 2023. Most working residents leave Harvey for work: only 5% work in town. The top destinations are Chicago (31%), South Holland (4%) and Homewood (2%).
| Harvey | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 23% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $42,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 5.5% | 11% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
21 within 15 miles of the center of Harvey
About 4 of every 100 Harvey residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
57 notable people were born in Harvey.
City in Illinois, United States
Harvey is a city and south suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 20,324 at the 2020 census. Harvey is bordered by the villages of Dixmoor and Riverdale to the north; Dolton, Phoenix, and South Holland to the east; East Hazel Crest to the south; and Hazel Crest, Markham and Posen to the west.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Harvey.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey | #751 | D | B+ | D | D | D |
| South Holland | #743 | D | C− | C− | D | C+ |
| Markham | #732 | D | C+ | — | C− | C− |
| Phoenix | — | — | A− | B− | D | C− |
| Dixmoor | #728 | D | B− | — | D | C− |
| Dolton | #757 | D− | C | — | D | C− |
| East Hazel Crest | — | — | B− | D | D | B− |
| Posen | #653 | C− | B− | C− | C | B− |
Phoenix and East Hazel Crest have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Markham, Dixmoor and Dolton report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Harvey with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Harvey grades D overall, better than 5% of U.S. towns and #751 of 767 in Illinois. It grades D for health, D for safety and D for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. That is 1.2 years of the area's median household income ($90,887 across the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
57 notable people were born here, including Keke Palmer and Nelsan Ellis.
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