Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Westchester grades A− overall, 264th of 767 graded towns in Illinois. It is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns. It reports less crime per resident than 90% of U.S. towns and residents are healthier than 88% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. The catch is cost: the typical home is worth about $369K, 4.1 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income. Westchester’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile, above both Illinois’ towns (0.3) and U.S. towns (0.4). Only 106 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns score lower on history. The biggest park or preserve is Possum Hollow Woods, at 89 acres.
Where Westchester beats most towns.
5.7% of the town is conserved land, across 9 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Illinois), ordered by how far Westchester is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 358 in 1930, 16,892 in 2020. The archive holds 9 old photos and papers going back to 2006 and 8 maps from 1891 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Westchester. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw16 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw13 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw11 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw14 mi MuseumArt Institute of Chicago1.5M visitors a yearSoldier Field: Photo by Joon Han Contact: [email protected], CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wrigley Field: Ryan Dickey, CC BY 2.0 · Barack Obama Presidential Center: AlphaBeta135, CC0 · 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 Westchester, 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 Westchester.
Westchester is healthier than Hillside and its other neighbors and costs more than Hillside or any other town next door, but it has a long record of flood insurance claims.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mayfair Park | 0.4 mi | 18 |
| 2. Possum Hollow Woods | 0.3 mi | 89 |
| 3. Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve | 0.3 mi | 79 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Reported crimes fell from 90 to 14 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings. Violent crime is rare: 1 reported in 2025, 0.1 per 1,000 residents.
Westchester’s property crime rate is 0.8 per 1,000 residents, below both the Illinois town median (7.9) and the median of U.S. towns (9.9). Westchester’s violent crime rate is 0.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Westchester | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.8 per 1,000 residents | 7.9 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.1 per 1,000 residents | 1 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Its A for health tops all 3 graded neighbors; Hillside (B) comes closest.
13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Westchester. Westchester beats the Illinois average on 14 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 18% of adults have been diagnosed with depression in Westchester.
| Westchester | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 22% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 37% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.1% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Westchester | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.7% | 10.3% |
| Fewer smokers | 9.1% | 12.1% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.1% | 7.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
29% of Westchester residents are 65 or older. Westchester has lost 3.5% of its people since 2020, down to 16,300 in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate. The median age in Westchester is 51.6 years.
| Westchester | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 51.6 years | 40.7 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 29% | 19% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 17% | 22% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 44% | 29% | 29% |
54% women, 46% men
About 84 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±2.2 points). Across Illinois, 50.6% of residents are women.
| Westchester | IL | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 7.2% | 11.5% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 9.7% | 10.4% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.8% | 9.1% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 8% | 13.6% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.6% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 11.9% | 12.4% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 16.8% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 17.6% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 11.5% | 7% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.7% | 9.5% | 10.4% |
| High school | 21.6% | 25.1% | 26% |
| Some college | 19.7% | 19.2% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.3% | 8.3% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 28.4% | 22.6% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 15.2% | 15.3% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
486 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 90 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 74% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 486 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Westchester.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Hillside is next at $293K.
Typical home values rose 7.3% in the year to September 2026.
| Westchester | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,794 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 91% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Westchester has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 17° and about 42 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Jobs based here grew from 7,720 in 2013 to 10,275.
Most working residents leave Westchester for work: only 3% work in town. Jobs based in Westchester grew to 10,275 in 2023, 2,555 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Chicago (29%), Oak Brook (3%) and Elmhurst (2%).
| Westchester | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 5% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $99,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.4% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Work from home | 14% | 11% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
50 within 15 miles of the center of Westchester
About 3 of every 100 Westchester residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
6 notable people were born in Westchester.
Village in Illinois, United States
Westchester is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a western suburb of Chicago. The population was 16,892 at the 2020 census.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Westchester.
It grades higher overall than all 3 graded towns on its borders; Hillside (C+) comes closest.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westchester | #264 | A− | C− | A | C+ | A |
| Hillside | #559 | C+ | C | C | C | B |
| Bellwood | #682 | C− | C | C+ | D | C+ |
| Broadview | #564 | C+ | C+ | — | C+ | C+ |
Broadview reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Westchester with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Westchester grades A− overall, better than 77% of U.S. towns and #264 of 767 in Illinois. It grades A for health, A for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
6 notable people were born here, including Kathryn Hahn and Julian Love.
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