Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Sycamore Township grades A− overall, 227th of 767 graded towns in Illinois, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. It is healthier than 81% of U.S. towns. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $87K. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: the typical home is worth about $288K, 3.2 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 90% of U.S. towns, with 1 place on the National Register. Only 107 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns score higher on history. 46% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Sycamore Township, where Illinois’ towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 29%. The biggest park or preserve is Sycamore Forest Preserve, at 54 acres.
Where Sycamore Township beats most towns.
Where Sycamore Township’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 Sycamore Township is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 338 in 1850, 18,577 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1917 and 3 maps from 1938 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Sycamore Township, 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 Sycamore Township.
20% of Sycamore Township adults binge drink. Sycamore Township beats the Illinois average on 8 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 33% of Sycamore Township adults sleep under 7 hours.
| Sycamore Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 18% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 35% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 20% | 23% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Sycamore Township | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.8% | 15.9% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.9% | 9.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.6% | 7.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by Sycamore CUSD 427. Three of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sycamore Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 847 | B− |
| Sycamore High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,161 | B+ |
| North Grove Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 377 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within IL on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Sycamore Township for work: only 15% work in town. Jobs based in Sycamore Township grew to 4,775 in 2023, 324 more than in 2013. The average trip to work in Sycamore Township is 28 minutes.
| Sycamore Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 15% | 8.3% | 8% |
| Work from home | 15% | 11% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7.5% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Sycamore Township has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 14° and about 39 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 63% of U.S. communities. Since 1983, 21 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Sycamore Township.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Sycamore Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.7% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Sycamore Forest Preserve | 0.9 mi | 54 |
| 2. Sycamore Lake Rotary Park | 0.7 mi | 17 |
| 3. Old Mill Park | 0.5 mi | 25 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the Illinois average. 25% of residents are under 18 in Sycamore Township. 46% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 38% across Illinois.
| Sycamore Township | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 25% | 22% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 15% | 19% | 18% |
| Median age | 37.6 years | 40.7 years | 40.5 years |
52% women, 48% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.5 points. Across Illinois, 50.6% of residents are women.
| Sycamore Township | IL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.5% | 11.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.2% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.5% | 13.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.7% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.6% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.2% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.8% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 5.5% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 3.7% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.7% | 25.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 22.4% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 7.5% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 27% | 22.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.6% | 15.3% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Sycamore Township. Close and well known come first.
39 mi Stadium & arenaAllstate Arena
15 mi MuseumIllinois Railway Museum
39 mi MuseumMcDonald's #1 Store Museum
33 mi MuseumMorton Arboretum
8 mi TheatreEgyptian Theatre, DeKalb
29 mi Stadium & arenaBMO CenterAllstate Arena: Nkon21, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Illinois Railway Museum: The original uploader was Slambo at English Wikipedia., CC BY-SA 2.0 · McDonald's #1 Store Museum: Bruce Marlin, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Morton Arboretum: Bruce Marlin, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Egyptian Theatre, DeKalb: Andy McMurray, CC BY 2.5 · BMO Center: SimLibrarian, CC0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Sycamore Township
About 7 of every 100 Sycamore Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Illinois.
4 towns share a border with Sycamore Township.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sycamore Township | #227 | A− | C | — | B+ | A− |
| Mayfield Township | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Burlington Township | — | — | C+ | — | A | A |
| Cortland Township | #460 | B− | C− | — | B− | A− |
| Sycamore | #166 | A | C+ | B+ | B+ | A− |
Burlington Township has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Sycamore Township, Burlington Township and Cortland Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Mayfield Township isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Sycamore Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Sycamore Township grades A− overall, better than 81% of U.S. towns and #227 of 767 in Illinois. It grades A− for health and B+ for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
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