Companystore, 2018
Mount Prospect’s story
Mount Prospect in pictures
Census counts: 349 in 1920, 56,852 in 2020. The archive holds 13 old photos and papers going back to 1957 and 7 maps from 1900 on.
Explore the history →
Photo: Indy beetle · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
55,395
2025 Census estimate · −2.6% since 2020
Typical home
$449K
+7.6% in a year
Household income
$102K
median
Median age
41.1
years
Jobs based here
18,810
A commuter town
TownGrade
A−
#231 of 767 in IL
Is Mount Prospect a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Mount Prospect grades A− overall, 231st among Illinois's 767 graded towns. Residents are healthier than 93% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The median household earns $102K. The trade-off is money: homes are expensive, about $449K for a typical one and 4.9 times the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income. Mount Prospect is more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns. On history, just 111 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns do worse. The biggest park or preserve is Melas Park, at 70 acres.
What makes Mount Prospect stand out
Where Mount Prospect beats most towns.
A commuter town
93% of working residents leave Mount Prospect for work
Where Mount Prospect’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
18,810jobs based in Mount Prospect
7%of working residents work in town
9 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
How Mount Prospect grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Mount Prospect is from typical.
HealthNorthwest Community Hospital 1 2.9 miles awayAOpen →WalkabilityEPA walkability 13 of 20; 5.9% of households have no carAOpen →Cost of livingDOpen →Jobs & incomeAOpen →SchoolsBeat 69% of Illinois districts on tests and graduationB+Open →SafetyB+Open →Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listC+Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors3 miles of trails; 8% conserved landB+Open →History10 notable people born hereC−Open →Civic life5.6 library visits per resident; 2 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsCOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market41 days on market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 41.1; 49% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Nearby attractions
All 171 attractions →Wrigley Field and 154 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Mount Prospect. Close and well known come first.
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw22 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
5 mi Stadium & arenaAllstate Arena
Big draw26 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw23 mi Stadium & arenaRate FieldSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Wrigley Field: Ryan Dickey, CC BY 2.0 · Soldier Field: Photo by Joon Han Contact: [email protected], CC BY-SA 3.0 · Allstate Arena: Nkon21, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · United Center: User:JeremyA, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Rate Field: User Enoch Lai on en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Mount Prospect: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Mount Prospect, and how to reach them.
PowerCommonwealth Edison17.7¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterMount Prospect water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet5 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpBy addressTown’s hauler · day by addressTown site
SchoolsTownship High School District 214Mount Prospect School District 57Community Consolidated School District 593 districts serve Mount Prospect; 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 code6005660056 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 Mount Prospect.
Mount Prospect is safe by national standards but not by Illinois’s; it also has property taxes 1.6 times the Illinois norm.
HealthA
For health, Mount Prospect earns an A
26% of adults have obesity in Mount Prospect, below both Illinois’ towns (37%) and U.S. towns (35%). 13% of Mount Prospect adults report frequent mental distress. Mount Prospect beats the Illinois average on 20 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0.
93%healthier than U.S. townsAHealth Grade
| Mount Prospect | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 37% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 17% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 35% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 10% | 13% | 14% |
32 measures vs. Illinois
20 better12 too close to call0 worse
| What stands out | Mount Prospect | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 5.5% | 7.8% |
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.8% | 10.3% |
Northwest Community Hospital 1
2.9 mi away · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
90th
percentile among IL towns
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
HousingCost of living grade D
For cost of living, Mount Prospect earns a D
The median property tax bill is $8,425, against $5,298 across Illinois, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
At $1,502 a month, Mount Prospect’s median rent is above both the Illinois town median ($1,128 a month) and the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Typical home values rose 7.6% in the year to September 2026.
$449KZillow home value
| Mount Prospect | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,502 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 69% | 75% | 73% |
Typical home value
Mount Prospect$449K
Illinois$296K
Market temperature
41
days on market
101.8%
sale-to-list price
+7.6%
value change, 1 year
60
homes sold in May
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Work & commuteJobs & income grade A
Most of Mount Prospect’s workers commute out: the town has 0.7 jobs for each of them
Most working residents leave Mount Prospect for work: only 7% work in town. 19% of workers work from home in Mount Prospect. Since 2013, Mount Prospect has lost 2,993 jobs, to 18,810 in 2023.
7%work in town
| Mount Prospect | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 19% | 11% | 11% |
| Median household income | $102,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.6% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
In Mount Prospect7%
Chicago18%
Arlington Heights6%
Des Plaines4%
Schaumburg4%
9 mi
median commute distance
18,810
jobs based in Mount Prospect
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
A
Walkability grade: more walkable than 92% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
#379for trails in IL
| Mount Prospect | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.6% | 3.6% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
7.6%
conserved · 522 of 6,835 acres
3.0 mi
of trails · 0.3 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Clearwater Park | 0.5 mi | 22 |
| 2. Hill Street Nature Center | 0.4 mi | 4 |
| 3. Lions Park | 0.3 mi | 23 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
SafetyB+
Less crime per resident in Mount Prospect than in 67% of U.S. towns
At 12.2 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 54% of Illinois’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 601 to 463 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Mount Prospect’s violent crime rate is 0.5 per 1,000 residents.
67%of U.S. towns report more crimeB+Safety Grade
| Mount Prospect | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.5 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 7.9 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
Violent crime per 1,000 residents
Mount Prospect0.5
Illinois2.6
U.S.3.3
Property crime per 1,000 residents
Mount Prospect7.9
Illinois15.6
U.S.15.5
67th
percentile among U.S. towns we grade
54th
percentile among IL towns
28
violent crimes reported in 2025
435
property crimes reported in 2025
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Climate
Four seasons and pleasant summers in Mount Prospect
Mount Prospect has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 16° and about 34 inches of snow falls in a winter.
34″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter19–34°
Spring38–58°
Summer61–82°
Fall43–62°
Oct 21
typical first frost
Apr 26
typical last frost
+1.4°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C+
Moderate risk in Mount Prospect, with inland flooding at the top
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 59% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 115 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Mount Prospect.
59risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingCold wavesTornadoes
115
paid flood claims since 1978
9
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Mount Prospect
20pages on Mount Prospect
The big questions
SchoolsB+Beat 69% of IL districtsSafetyB+0.5 violent crimes per 1,000 residents (2025)HealthABetter than IL on 20 of 32 CDC measuresCost of livingD$449K typical home · up 7.6% in a yearWork & commuteA$102K median household income · 18,810 jobs hereNatural hazardsC+FEMA risk higher than 59% of U.S. communities · inland flooding
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
20 within 15 miles of the center of Mount Prospect
Oakton CollegeCommunity college · Public · Des Plaines2.9 mi$3,985 in-state tuitionWilliam Rainey Harper CollegeCommunity college · Public · Palatine7.1 mi$3,894 in-state tuitionNortheastern Illinois UniversityUniversity or college · Public · Chicago12.6 mi$12,383 in-state tuition
About 5 of every 100 Mount Prospect residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
Famous people from Mount Prospect
10 notable people were born in Mount Prospect.
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About Mount Prospect
Village in Illinois, United States
Mount Prospect is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is part of Elk Grove and Wheeling townships, about 20 miles (32 km) northwest of downtown Chicago and approximately 4 miles (6.4 km) north of O'Hare International Airport. As of the 2020 census, the village had a total population of 56,852.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 10 sq mi
- Elevation
- 663 ft
- ZIP code
- 60056
- Area code
- 847
Mount Prospect’s neighbors
3 towns share a border with Mount Prospect.
Arlington HeightsDes PlainesProspect HeightsMount Prospect
How the neighbors grade
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Prospect | #231 | A− | D | B+ | B+ | A |
| Arlington Heights | #88 | A | D | B+ | A | A+ |
| Des Plaines | #197 | A− | C− | B | A− | A |
| Prospect Heights | #258 | A− | C− | B+ | B+ | A |
Questions about Mount Prospect
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Mount Prospect, IL a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Mount Prospect grades A− overall, better than 81% of U.S. towns and #231 of 767 in Illinois. It grades A for health, B+ for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Is Mount Prospect, IL expensive?
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.