Tornado over, 2008
Hickory Hills’s story
75 years in pictures
Census counts: 2,707 in 1960, 14,505 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2008 and 8 maps from 1890 on.
- 1951Hickory Hills is settled
Photo: Crosbiesmith · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
14,101
2025 Census estimate · −2.8% since 2020
Typical home
$344K
+6.7% in a year
Household income
$77K
median
Median age
38.8
years
Jobs based here
3,133
A commuter town
TownGrade
A−
#205 of 767 in IL
Is Hickory Hills a good place to live?
Hickory Hills grades A− overall, 205th of 767 graded towns in Illinois, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. Its public schools beat 90% of Illinois towns on state tests and graduation and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 91% of U.S. towns. It also does better than most on health: it is healthier than 73% of U.S. towns. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: the typical home is worth about $344K, 3.8 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income. 12% of the land in Hickory Hills is conserved, against 3.6% in Illinois’ towns and 4.3% across U.S. towns. Only 27 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns score lower on history. Hickory Hills's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 93% of U.S. towns.
What makes Hickory Hills stand out
Where Hickory Hills beats most towns.
A commuter town
96% of working residents leave Hickory Hills for work
Where Hickory Hills’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
3,133jobs based in Hickory Hills
4%of working residents work in town
13 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Hickory Hills grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Hickory Hills is from typical.
WalkabilityEPA walkability 13.3 of 20; 5.2% of households have no carAOpen →SchoolsAOpen →HealthUchicago Medicine Adventhealth La Grange 4.6 miles awayB+Open →Cost of livingCOpen →SafetyB+Open →Jobs & income$77K median household incomeBOpen →Hazard riskFEMA risk higher than 49% of U.S. communities; inland flooding tops the listB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors1 mile of trailA−Open →History1 notable person born hereD−Open →Civic life1 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsDOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market56 days on market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 38.8; 25% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Nearby attractions
All 167 attractions →Soldier Field and 153 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Hickory Hills. Close and well known come first.
Big draw15 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw13 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw12 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw13 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw15 mi MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a yearSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Soldier Field: Photo by Joon Han Contact: [email protected], CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wrigley Field: Ryan Dickey, CC BY 2.0 · Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · 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
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Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Hickory Hills: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Hickory Hills, and how to reach them.
PowerCommonwealth Edison17.7¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterHickory Hills water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet4 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpBy addressTown’s hauler · day by addressTown site
SchoolsConsolidated High School District 230North Palos School District 1172 districts serve Hickory Hills; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
Register to voteOnlineIn Illinois you can register online until 16 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 28 days before).vote.govWho runs elections hereCook County ClerkCook County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Apr 2026
ZIP code6045760457 99%Census 2020
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 Hickory Hills.
OutdoorsA−
Hickory Hills earns an A− for the outdoors
1.1 miles of trail in 10 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Prairie View Park, at 20 acres.
#315for trails in IL
12%
conserved · 218 of 1,808 acres
1.1 mi
of trails · 0.4 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Prairie View Park | 0.8 mi | 20 |
| 2. Kasey Meadow Park | 0.1 mi | 16 |
| 3. Kruger Park | — | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Work & commuteJobs & income grade B
With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of Hickory Hills’ workers commute out
Most working residents leave Hickory Hills for work: only 4% work in town. At 30 minutes, Hickory Hills’ average trip to work is where Illinois’ towns sit at 26 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Since 2013, Hickory Hills has lost 233 jobs, to 3,133 in 2023.
4%work in town
| Hickory Hills | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 30 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.2% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 11% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Hickory Hills4%
Chicago26%
Bridgeview3%
Bedford Park2%
Oak Lawn2%
13 mi
median commute distance
3,133
jobs based in Hickory Hills
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A
Walkability grade: more walkable than 91% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
HealthB+
Hickory Hills earns a B+ for health
20% of adults binge drink in Hickory Hills. Hickory Hills beats the Illinois average on 2 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 30% of adults have obesity in Hickory Hills.
73%healthier than U.S. townsB+Health Grade
| Hickory Hills | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 37% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 35% | 35% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 76% | 78% | 79% |
32 measures vs. Illinois
2 better28 too close to call2 worse
| What stands out | Hickory Hills | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults with obesity | 30.2% | 34% |
| Fewer adults with high blood pressure | 30.1% | 33% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 13.9% | 10.3% |
Uchicago Medicine Adventhealth La Grange
4.6 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
60th
percentile among IL towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
SafetyB+
Less crime per resident in Hickory Hills than in 67% of U.S. towns
At 12.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 54% of Illinois’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 161 to 111 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Hickory Hills’ violent crime rate is 0.3 per 1,000 residents.
67%of U.S. towns report more crimeB+Safety Grade
| Hickory Hills | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.3 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.6 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Hickory Hills0.3
Illinois2.6
U.S.3.3
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Hickory Hills7.6
Illinois15.6
U.S.15.5
67th
percentile among U.S. towns we grade
54th
percentile among IL towns
4
violent crimes reported in 2025
107
property crimes reported in 2025
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Climate
Four seasons and pleasant summers in Hickory Hills
Hickory Hills has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 17° and about 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
39″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter20–35°
Spring39–59°
Summer62–82°
Fall44–63°
Nov 1
typical first frost
Apr 10
typical last frost
+1.3°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HousingCost of living grade C
Hickory Hills earns a C for cost of living
Typical home values rose 6.7% in the year to September 2026.
$344KZillow home value
| Hickory Hills | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 71% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,145 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Hickory Hills$344K
Illinois$296K
Market temperature
56
days on market
99.6%
sale-to-list price
+6.7%
value change, 1 year
12
homes sold in May
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade B−
Moderate risk in Hickory Hills, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 51% of U.S. communities. Since 1982, 18 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Hickory Hills.
49risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
18
paid flood claims since 1982
8
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Hickory Hills
20pages on Hickory Hills
The big questions
SchoolsABeat 90% of IL districtsSafetyB+0.3 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2025)HealthB+Better than IL on 2 of 32 CDC measuresCost of livingC$344K typical home · up 6.7% in a yearWork & commuteB$77K median household income · 3,133 jobs hereNatural hazardsB−FEMA risk higher than 49% of U.S. communities · inland flooding
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
41 within 15 miles of the center of Hickory Hills
Moraine Valley Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Palos Hills2.1 mi$3,822 in-state tuitionNorthwestern CollegeUniversity or college · Private for-profit · Oak Lawn4.4 miChicago State UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Chicago11.3 mi$12,754 in-state tuition
About 7 of every 100 Hickory Hills residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
About Hickory Hills
City in Cook County, Illinois, United States
Hickory Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. Located principally in Palos Township, it is a suburb of Chicago. The population in 2020 was 14,505.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1951
- Area
- 2.8 sq mi
- Elevation
- 689 ft
- ZIP code
- 60457
- Area code
- 708
Hickory Hills’s neighbors
3 towns share a border with Hickory Hills.
Palos HillsBridgeviewJusticeHickory Hills
How the neighbors grade
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hickory Hills | #205 | A− | C | B+ | A | B+ |
| Palos Hills | #120 | A | C | A− | A | A− |
| Bridgeview | #350 | B+ | C | — | A− | B+ |
| Justice | #608 | C | C | — | B− | B− |
Bridgeview and Justice report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Hickory Hills with a neighbor →
Questions about Hickory Hills
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Hickory Hills, IL a good place to live?
By most measures, yes. Hickory Hills grades A− overall, better than 82% of U.S. towns and #205 of 767 in Illinois. It grades B+ for health, B+ for safety and A for schools.
Is Hickory Hills, 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 C.