Photo: Sea Cow · CC BY-SA 4.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Naperville costs more to live in than 85% of U.S. towns
It ranks #668 of 768 in Illinois and #219 of 400 U.S. cities over 100,000 for affordability. Up 4.5% in a year, about twice the Illinois typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area ($91K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Naperville’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($91K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 20% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 40% of renters.
In dollars
- $619Ktypical home, 109% above the Illinois typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $2,430a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 104prices across the Chicago metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 112)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 5.9 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$91K, Chicago-area income
- 25%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 40%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Illinois: 48%Census 2020–24
- 20%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What stands out about housing in Naperville
What’s behind Naperville’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Naperville is more affordable than 15% of U.S. towns, #668 of 768 in Illinois. Home prices pull the grade down most; the share of households paying 30%+ for housing holds it up.
Values have outpaced Illinois: the typical Naperville home is up 37.7% in five years, against 29.6% statewide (Zillow).
Up 37.7% in five years
Faster than Illinois (29.6%).
Show as a table
| January | Naperville | Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $366,000 | $179,000 |
| 2018 | $381,000 | $188,000 |
| 2019 | $390,000 | $193,000 |
| 2020 | $393,000 | $198,000 |
| 2021 | $417,000 | $213,000 |
| 2022 | $459,000 | $233,000 |
| 2023 | $491,000 | $246,000 |
| 2024 | $535,000 | $260,000 |
| 2025 | $570,000 | $275,000 |
| 2026 | $600,000 | $287,000 |
| September 2026 | $619,000 | $296,000 |
A typical Naperville home worth $364K in October 2016 is worth about $619K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A seller's market
Supply is tight — about 3 months of homes for sale at the current pace. Buyers should expect competition on well-priced homes.
Under ~4 months of supply favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers.
Redfin Data Center, all residential sales, May 2026.
A typical home costs 5.9 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Naperville’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $312K short of a typical Naperville home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $2,430 a month here, $1,850 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, the Illinois typical property tax (2.01% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $2,430
Renters already here pay a median of $1,885, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
228 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 228 new homes in Naperville in 2025: 224 single-family houses and 4 in buildings with two or more homes, worth about $113.5 million to build. That's 1.5 per 1,000 residents, about the pace of Illinois as a whole. Over the past 10 years, Naperville has permitted 4,317 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Naperville gained 7,687 residents while 3,811 new homes were permitted: about 2 new residents per new home. Building and growth moved roughly in step.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 210 | 178 | 32 | $95.8 million |
| 2025 | 228 | 224 | 4 | $113.5 million |
| 2024 | 369 | 228 | 141 | $116.5 million |
| 2023 | 463 | 169 | 294 | $135.9 million |
| 2022 | 247 | 247 | 0 | $108.5 million |
| 2021 | 735 | 276 | 459 | $216.6 million |
| 2020 | 431 | 319 | 112 | $115.1 million |
| 2019 | 314 | 246 | 68 | $98 million |
| 2018 | 572 | 273 | 299 | $150 million |
| 2017 | 558 | 337 | 221 | $174.3 million |
| 2016 | 400 | 335 | 65 | $118.6 million |
| 2015 | 337 | 328 | 9 | $105.9 million |
| 2014 | 460 | 375 | 85 | $121 million |
| 2013 | 595 | 297 | 298 | $124.7 million |
| 2012 | 295 | 295 | 0 | $80 million |
| 2011 | 186 | 186 | 0 | $50.9 million |
| 2010 | 94 | 94 | 0 | $35.4 million |
| 2009 | 86 | 86 | 0 | $31.2 million |
| 2008 | 154 | 154 | 0 | $61.9 million |
| 2007 | 343 | 281 | 62 | $109.9 million |
| 2006 | 594 | 364 | 230 | $193.6 million |
| 2005 | 565 | 407 | 158 | $209.1 million |
| 2004 | 531 | 481 | 50 | $187.1 million |
| 2003 | 668 | 614 | 54 | $166.3 million |
| 2002 | 1,067 | 671 | 396 | $183 million |
| 2001 | 1,062 | 764 | 298 | $186.4 million |
| 2000 | 1,129 | 1,107 | 22 | $187.7 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
High tax bills, but a low tax rate
The median bill is $10,000+ (Illinois: $5,298), because homes cost more. As a share of value it’s 1.85%+ a year, against 2.01% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Naperville
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, or Illinois. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 104 | IL 100 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 107 | IL 104 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 84 | IL 85 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 100 | IL 100 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Naperville vs. its neighbors
Of the 6 towns here with a Zillow value, Naperville has the 6th-lowest. Lisle and Naperville Township have no Zillow value, so they are in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Naperville | D | $619K | $540K | 1.85%+ | $2,430 |
| Warrenville | C− | $357K | $286K | 2.05% | $2,160 |
| Lisle | D | — | $407K | 2.12% | $2,040 |
| Bolingbrook | D | $370K | $315K | 2.46% | $2,300 |
| Aurora | C− | $323K | $275K | 2.28% | $2,060 |
| Plainfield | D | $429K | $431K | 2.20% | $2,470 |
| Naperville Township | D | — | $402K | 2.12% | $2,420 |
| Winfield Township | C− | $461K | $302K | 2.24% | $1,900 |
“+”: the Census reports the tax bill only as $10,000 or more, so the rate is at least that. “—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.
Questions about the cost of living in Naperville
Is Naperville expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Naperville costs more than 85% of U.S. towns: a D for cost of living, #668 of 768 in Illinois. The typical home costs 5.9 years of the median household income of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area ($91K).
How much does a house cost in Naperville?
About $619K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 4.5% in a year. The Illinois typical home is $296K.
What salary do you need to live in Naperville?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $183,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $4,280 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $97,000.
How much is rent in Naperville?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $2,430 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,885 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Naperville?
The median bill is $10,000+ a year, 1.85% of the median home value (Illinois: $5,298, 2.01%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Naperville going up?
Yes: up 4.5% in the past year and 37.7% in five years, against 29.6% across Illinois (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Naperville buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.