Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Marion grades low on several counts. Overall, Marion earns a D, better than just over a tenth of U.S. towns. That places it 704th of 767 in Illinois. The weak point is safety: it reports more crime per resident than 82% of U.S. towns, including 71 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Hazard risk is weaker too: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 77% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. A typical home there costs about $182K, 2.8 years of the Marion area’s $66K median household income. The biggest park or preserve is Williamson County Fairgrounds, at 53 acres. 40% of working residents work locally in the town, where Illinois’ towns sit at 8.3% and U.S. towns at 8%.
Figures: FBI crime data, 2025 · FEMA National Risk Index · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · OpenStreetMap · Census LEHD, 2023.
Where Marion beats most towns.
Willis Allen HouseWhere Marion’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Marion is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 881 in 1880, 16,855 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1880 and 5 maps from 1925 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Marion, 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 Marion.
Marion draws workers from Herrin and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it has seen reported crime rise by about half.
16,510 jobs are based in Marion, 2.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
In Marion, 13% of residents live below the poverty line. Between 2013 and 2023, jobs locally rose by 1,251, to 16,510. The town’s average commute is 22 minutes. The median commute is under 7 miles.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 40% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $57,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Three of the 11 schools are below, and why each made the list. The largest public high school is Marion High School, with 1,075 students. Marion CUSD 2 runs its public schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marion Jr High SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 742 | B− |
| Marion High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,075 | C+ |
| Washington Elem SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 465 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IL on state tests and graduation
Trails run 6.6 miles in 9 parks and preserves. Marion’s trail density comes in at 0.5 miles per square mile.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 0.6% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Williamson County Fairgrounds | — | 53 |
| 2. Harry Crisp Sports Complex | — | 37 |
| 3. Pyramid Park | — | 32 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Reported crimes rose from 266 to 503 over the last three FBI years, a rise beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
In Marion, the rate of thefts and burglaries is 25.3 per 1,000 residents. Its rate of reported violence stands at 4.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 25.3 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.2 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Typical home values rose 2.8% in the year to September 2026. Among households in Marion, 63% live in a home they own. Homes sold in Marion spent a median 58 days on the market.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 63% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $921 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
160 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 15 properties have flooded more than once.
Marion has had 160 paid flood insurance claims since 1982. FEMA puts 43% of the town’s expected hazard losses down to earthquakes, and 19% to inland flooding. Households locally have drawn federal disaster aid in 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2011.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
For Marion, the peak summer temperature is 88°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
29% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 38% across Illinois. People 65 and older are nearly a quarter of residents (17% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 17% of residents (23% statewide). For residents in Marion, the share who are under 18 is 21%.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 24% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 42.2 years | 40.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 21% | 22% | 22% |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.3 points. Across Illinois, 50.6% of residents are women.
| Marion | IL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10% | 11.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 11% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 4.9% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 12% | 13.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 15.2% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.3% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.3% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.3% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 5.9% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.8% | 25.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 23.4% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 11.4% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 16.7% | 22.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 11.9% | 15.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Against the 7,994 U.S. towns with household incomes like Marion’s, it is healthier than 68%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
On the CDC’s 32 measures, Marion is ahead of Illinois on 1 and behind on 9. 26% of adults get no exercise outside work in Marion. Two figures for adults locally: 38% have high blood pressure, 14% report frequent physical distress.
| Marion | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 37% | 35% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 38% | 35% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| What stands out | Marion | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.9% | 9.9% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 16.3% | 10.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Marion
About 4 of every 100 Marion residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
5 places in Marion on the National Register of Historic Places.
16 notable people were born in Marion.
City in Illinois, United States
Marion is a city in and the county seat of Williamson County, Illinois, United States. The population was 16,855 according to the 2020 census. It is part of a dispersed urban area that developed out of early 20th-century coal fields. Marion serves as the largest retail trade center in Southern Illinois with its central location along Interstate 57 and Illinois Route 13. The city is part of the Marion-Herrin micropolitan area and is a part of the Carbondale-Marion-Herrin, Illinois combined statistical area with 123,272 residents, the sixth-most populous Combined statistical area in Illinois.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Marion grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #704 of 767 in Illinois. It grades C+ for health, C− for safety and C+ for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a C−.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
16 notable people were born here, including Edward E. Denison and Ray Fosse.
