Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Riverdale earns a D−, 761st among Illinois's 767 graded towns, mostly because of health and schools. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 96% of the country. Its schools rank behind 93% of the state's. In its favor, it is more walkable than 98% of U.S. towns. 42% of residents live below the poverty line in Riverdale, against 8.4% in Illinois’ towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On hazard risk, just 55 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns do worse. Pacesetter Gardens Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Where Riverdale beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Pacesetter Gardens Historic District| Widest gap | Riverdale | IL |
|---|---|---|
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 25.6% | 7.8% |
13,549 counted in 2010 and 10,663 in 2020; an estimated 10,280 in 2025.
The decline has continued: down 3.6% since 2020, after 21.3% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Riverdale is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 98% of comparable towns) to D− for health (better than 4%), so the D− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 450 in 1880, a peak of 15,806 in 1970, 10,663 in 2020. The archive holds 18 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 Riverdale. Close and well known come first.
Big draw15 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw10 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw21 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw13 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw16 mi MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a yearSoldier Field: Photo by Joon Han Contact: [email protected], CC BY-SA 3.0 · Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · Wrigley Field: Ryan Dickey, CC BY 2.0 · 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 Riverdale, 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 Riverdale.
Riverdale is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has homes that are cheap against local pay, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Illinois (mostly inland flooding).
Against the 2,344 U.S. towns with household incomes like Riverdale’s, it is less healthy than 74%, so its D− isn’t only a matter of income.
32% of Riverdale adults say their health is fair or poor. Among 767 Illinois towns, just 3 have a higher share of adults who feel lonely than Riverdale. 20% of Riverdale adults report frequent mental distress.
| Riverdale | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 18% | 19% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 11% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 50% | 35% | 36% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 33% | 33% |
| What stands out | Riverdale | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 4.5% | 7.6% |
| Fewer binge drinkers | 13% | 17.8% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 25.6% | 7.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 1.3 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income, the typical home (about $119K) costs less against local pay than in 97% of Illinois towns; that ratio is one input to its B− for cost of living. 74.6% of renter households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, against 47.9% across Illinois.
The typical Riverdale home is worth about $119,000, up 6.4% in a year, 60% below the Illinois typical home. 52% of households own their home in Riverdale.
| Riverdale | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 52% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,231 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 95% of Illinois towns, with expected losses of about $623 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Riverdale’s FEMA risk score is 83 of 100. Since 1984, 4 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Riverdale.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1.4 miles of trail in 8 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Kickapoo Woods, at 149 acres.
| Riverdale | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.2% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Riverdale Park | 0.5 mi | 13 |
| 2. Kickapoo Woods | — | 149 |
| 3. Whistler Woods | — | 138 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The median household income in Riverdale is $40,000. Most working residents leave Riverdale for work: only 2% work in town. The average trip to work in Riverdale is 34 minutes.
| Riverdale | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 34 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $40,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 8.4% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Riverdale has chilly winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 18° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Riverdale's reported crime rate is well above Illinois's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 39 violent crimes were reported in 2025.
| Riverdale | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 24.6 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.8 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
25 within 15 miles of the center of Riverdale
About 5 of every 100 Riverdale residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
Where Riverdale’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 notable people were born in Riverdale.
Village in Illinois, United States
Riverdale is a village and south suburb in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,663 at the 2020 census. The village shares its name with the bordering Riverdale neighborhood in Chicago.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Riverdale.
All 6 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D−; Dolton (D−) is closest. Chicago next door grades higher for schools (C to Riverdale’s D) and lower for cost of living (C− to B−).
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riverdale | #761 | D− | B− | — | D | D− |
| Calumet Township | #740 | D | C+ | — | C− | D |
| Chicago | #676 | C− | C− | D | C | B+ |
| Blue Island | #707 | D | B− | C− | C− | C+ |
| Dixmoor | #728 | D | B− | — | D | C− |
| Thornton Township | #693 | D | C+ | — | C− | C |
| Dolton | #757 | D− | C | — | D | C− |
Riverdale, Calumet Township, Dixmoor, Thornton Township and Dolton report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Riverdale with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Riverdale grades D− overall, better than 4% of U.S. towns and #761 of 767 in Illinois. It grades D− for health and D for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
That is 1.3 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 B−.
3 notable people were born here, including Betty Robinson and Antwaan Randle El.
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