Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 18,773, settled in 1869.
Homewood's standout: it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 97% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades B, ranked 429th of 767 in Illinois. Residents are healthier than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and it has 5 miles of trail. Its weakest subject is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 69% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. Homewood’s property crime rate is 26.1 per 1,000 residents, where Illinois’ towns sit at 7.9 and U.S. towns at 9.9. Ravisloe Country Club is on the National Register of Historic Places. Homewood's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) is stronger than in 85% of U.S. towns.
Where Homewood beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Homewood is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 352 in 1900, 19,463 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1986 and 7 maps from 1892 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Homewood. Close and well known come first.
Big draw21 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw16 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw22 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw22 mi MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a yearSoldier 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
Who provides power, water and the rest in Homewood, 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 Homewood.
Homewood trades workers with Chicago and other neighbors, but it has many renters stretched by housing costs.
5.2 miles of trail in 20 parks and preserves. The trail density in Homewood is 1.0 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Izaak Walton Preserve, 170 acres with 1.9 miles of trail.
| Homewood | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 5.5% | 3.6% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Izaak Walton Preserve | 1.9 mi | 170 |
| 2. Apollo Park | 0.7 mi | 32 |
| 3. Patriots Park | 0.5 mi | 12 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
19% of Homewood adults have been diagnosed with depression. Homewood beats the Illinois average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 15% of Homewood adults report frequent mental distress.
| Homewood | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 22% | 23% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Homewood | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.2% | 9.9% |
| Fewer smokers | 10.4% | 12.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Since 1978, 49 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Homewood.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Homewood 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
Adults 18 to 34 are 16% of residents (23% statewide); children under 18 are 27% of residents (22% statewide). 47% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Homewood. Homewood has lost 3.5% of its people since 2020, down to 18,773 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Homewood | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 47% | 29% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 27% | 22% | 22% |
49% women, 51% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.4 points. Across Illinois, 50.6% of residents are women. Median age: women 43.2, men 37.2.
| Homewood | IL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.7% | 11.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 16.3% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.3% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.3% | 13.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.9% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.5% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.4% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 12.5% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 6.1% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.6% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 19.4% | 25.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.3% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.2% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 26% | 22.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 21.4% | 15.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Homewood has about as many jobs (9,058) as working residents, but only 573 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 6,219 in 2013 to 9,058.
Most working residents leave Homewood for work: only 7% work in town. Homewood’s average trip to work is 33 minutes. Since 2013, Homewood has added 2,839 jobs, to 9,058 in 2023.
| Homewood | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 17% | 11% | 11% |
| Median household income | $100,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
63.2% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 47.9% across Illinois.
Typical home values rose 5.2% in the year to September 2026.
| Homewood | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 82% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,333 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
13 within 15 miles of the center of Homewood
About 3 of every 100 Homewood residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
4 notable people were born in Homewood.
Village in Illinois, United States
Homewood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 19,463 at the 2020 census. It is a south suburb of Chicago.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with Homewood.
It grades higher overall than all 5 graded towns on its borders; Flossmoor (B−) comes closest.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homewood | #429 | B | C+ | C | B | A− |
| Flossmoor | #456 | B− | D | C | B | A |
| Hazel Crest | #739 | D | C+ | D | C− | C+ |
| East Hazel Crest | — | — | B− | D | D | B− |
| Thornton | — | — | B+ | C | D | A− |
| Glenwood | #680 | C− | C | C | C− | B− |
| Bloom Township | #663 | C− | C+ | — | C− | C |
| Rich Township | #601 | C | C | — | C− | B |
East Hazel Crest and Thornton have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Bloom Township and Rich Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Homewood with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Homewood grades B overall, better than 57% of U.S. towns and #429 of 767 in Illinois. It grades A− for health, C for safety and B for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 2.8 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 C+.
4 notable people were born here, including Kevin Dillard and T. J. Cummings.
_-_Chicago,_IL_-_June_2026.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}