Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Rochelle gives you more for your money than most places: homes are within reach, about $205K for a typical one, or 2.5 years of the Rochelle area’s $82K median household income. It grades C overall, 607th of 767 graded towns in Illinois. The low prices come with trade-offs. Its schools rank behind 77% of the state's. 35% of working residents work locally in Rochelle, above both Illinois’ towns (8.3%) and U.S. towns (8%). Its National Register listings include Flagg Township Public Library and William H. Holcomb House.
Where Rochelle beats most towns.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Rochelle is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,893 in 1880, 9,446 in 2020. The archive holds 17 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 3 maps from 1952 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rochelle, 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 Rochelle.
53% of households own their home in Rochelle. Typical home values rose 6.1% in the year to September 2026. The median rent in Rochelle is $985 a month.
| Rochelle | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 53% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $985 a month | $1,129 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Rochelle has cold winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 13° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
About one in 3 of Rochelle’s working residents works in town. Rochelle’s average trip to work is 22 minutes. Jobs based in Rochelle fell to 5,183 in 2023, 691 fewer than in 2013.
| Rochelle | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 5.6% | 11% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $66,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7.9% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Rochelle beats the Illinois average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 4. 42% of Rochelle adults have obesity.
| Rochelle | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 35% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 7.9% | 8.1% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 18% | 16% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Rochelle | IL |
|---|---|---|
| More uninsured adults | 12.9% | 9.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 7.5% | 6.3% |
| More adults in frequent physical distress | 14.2% | 12.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Rochelle's reported crime rate is below Illinois's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 22 violent crimes were reported in 2025.
| Rochelle | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.3 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.8 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
1.6 miles of trail in 14 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Drexler Park, at 31 acres.
| Rochelle | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.4% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Atwood Park | 0.4 mi | 9 |
| 2. Drexler Park | — | 31 |
| 3. Helms Park and Athletic Complex | — | 22 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 54% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 31 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rochelle.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rochelle. Close and well known come first.
35 mi MuseumIllinois Railway Museum
24 mi Stadium & arenaBMO Center
16 mi TheatreEgyptian Theatre, DeKalb
22 mi National Historic SiteRonald Reagan Boyhood Home National Historic Site
26 mi GardenAnderson Japanese Gardens
16 mi MuseumEllwood HouseIllinois Railway Museum: The original uploader was Slambo at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 2.0 · BMO Center: SimLibrarian, CC0 · Egyptian Theatre, DeKalb: Andy McMurray, CC BY 2.5 · Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home National Historic Site: Teemu008 from Palatine, Illinois, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Anderson Japanese Gardens: M. Readey, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ellwood House: Paul R. Burley, CC0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Rochelle
About 9 of every 100 Rochelle residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
4 places in Rochelle on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Rochelle.
City in Illinois, United States
Rochelle is a city in Ogle and Lee counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,446 at the 2020 census. Rochelle is approximately 80 miles (130 km) west of Chicago and 25 miles (40 km) south of Rockford.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Rochelle.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochelle | #607 | C | B+ | — | C− | C+ |
| Flagg Township | #578 | C | B+ | — | C | C+ |
| Hillcrest | — | — | B | — | C | B− |
| Dement Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Hillcrest has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Rochelle, Flagg Township and Hillcrest report no FBI crime data of their own. Dement Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Rochelle with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Rochelle grades C overall, better than 28% of U.S. towns and #607 of 767 in Illinois. It grades C+ for health and C− for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a C−.
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 B+.
9 notable people were born here, including Joan Allen and Lloyd Ingraham.
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