Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Litchfield gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $133K, 2.1 years of the county’s $64K median household income. It grades B overall, 408th among Illinois's 767 graded towns. The low prices come with trade-offs. The median household income is $54K, and 16% of residents live below the poverty line. On the plus side, it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 85% of U.S. towns. Litchfield’s property crime rate is 31.4 per 1,000 residents, above both Illinois’ towns (9.3) and U.S. towns (11.5). Litchfield has 6 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Samuel Moody Grubbs House and Litchfield Public Library.
Where Litchfield beats most towns.
Samuel Moody Grubbs House
Census counts: 1,609 in 1860, 6,605 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1873 and 3 maps from 1915 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Litchfield is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Litchfield, 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 Litchfield.
Litchfield trades lower home prices for longer drives to work, is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has commutes shorter than most of Illinois.
Homes are within reach (about $133K for the typical one, A− for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 29 miles. At 2.1 years of the county’s $64K median household income, the typical home (about $133K) costs less against local pay than in 75% of Illinois towns; that ratio is one input to its A− for cost of living.
The median rent in Litchfield is $675 a month. Typical home values rose 5.4% in the year to September 2026. 66% of Litchfield households own their home.
| Litchfield | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $675 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 66% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Against the 7,107 U.S. towns with household incomes like Litchfield’s, it is healthier than 60%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
Litchfield beats the Illinois average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 10. 15% of adults report frequent physical distress in Litchfield.
| Litchfield | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 18% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| What stands out | Litchfield | IL |
|---|---|---|
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 79.1% | 75.7% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 6.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Litchfield has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 21° and about 14 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 2,563 working residents takes 18.8 minutes, against 27.8 across Illinois.
About one in 4 of Litchfield’s working residents works in town. Litchfield’s average trip to work is 19 minutes. Jobs based in Litchfield fell to 3,285 in 2023, 322 fewer than in 2013.
| Litchfield | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 27% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $54,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 6.6% | 11% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Litchfield's reported crime rate is well above Illinois's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 15 violent crimes were reported in 2024.
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
| Litchfield | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.5% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Madison Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 54% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Litchfield since 2002.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Litchfield
About 4 of every 100 Litchfield residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
6 places in Litchfield on the National Register of Historic Places.
7 notable people were born in Litchfield.
City in Illinois, United States
Litchfield is a city in Montgomery County, Illinois, United States. The population was 6,605 at the 2020 census. It is located in South Central Illinois, south of Springfield, the state capital.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Litchfield.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Litchfield | #408 | B | A− | — | B+ | C |
| North Litchfield Township | #283 | A− | A− | — | B+ | C+ |
| South Litchfield Township | #447 | B | A | — | B+ | C+ |
| Butler Grove Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Zanesville Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Litchfield, North Litchfield Township and South Litchfield Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Butler Grove Township and Zanesville Township aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Litchfield with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Litchfield grades B overall, better than 59% of U.S. towns and #408 of 767 in Illinois. It grades C for health and B+ for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.
7 notable people were born here, including Samuel Wesley Stratton and Belva Gaertner.
