Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Willowbrook grades A− overall, ranked 198th of 767 in Illinois. Its schools outperform 94% of the state's. Residents are healthier than 93% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and the median household earns $99K. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $326K, 3.6 years of the Chicago metro’s $91K median household income. 53% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Willowbrook, where Illinois’ towns sit at 29% and U.S. towns at 29%. Willowbrook is more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns. Only 83 of Illinois’ 1,285 towns score lower on history.
Where Willowbrook beats most towns.
Where Willowbrook’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 Willowbrook is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 157 in 1960, 9,236 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 1938 and 8 maps from 1891 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Willowbrook. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaSoldier Field
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaWrigley Field
Big draw18 mi MuseumBarack Obama Presidential Center
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaRate Field
Big draw16 mi Stadium & arenaUnited Center
Big draw18 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 Willowbrook, 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 Willowbrook.
Willowbrook draws workers from Chicago and beyond and costs less than Westmont or any other town next door, but it reports more crime than Westmont and its other graded neighbors.
6,745 jobs are based in Willowbrook, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
Most working residents leave Willowbrook for work: only 3% work in town. The top destinations are Chicago (26%), Downers Grove (4%) and Naperville (3%). Half commute less than 13 miles.
| Willowbrook | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $99,000 | $83,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.5% | 8.4% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 6.6% | 8.4% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 26 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Illinois is food insecurity: 8.9% of its 7,756 adults worry about having enough food, against 15.9% statewide.
13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Willowbrook. Willowbrook beats the Illinois average on 17 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 28% of adults have obesity in Willowbrook.
| Willowbrook | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 22% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 37% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Willowbrook | IL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.9% | 15.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.5% | 13.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.1% | 7.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1.5 miles of trail in 6 parks and preserves.
| Willowbrook | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.3 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.8% | 3.7% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Waterford Park | 0.3 mi | 4 |
| 2. Willow Pond Park | 0.3 mi | 4 |
| 3. Tony and Florence Borse Memorial Community Park | — | 26 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Willowbrook has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 84°, January nights drop to 16° and about 42 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 62% of U.S. communities. Since 1983, 6 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Willowbrook.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Its typical home is the least expensive on its borders; Westmont is next at $411K.
The median rent in Willowbrook is $1,747 a month. The typical Willowbrook home is worth about $326,000, up 3.7% in a year, 10% above the Illinois typical home.
| Willowbrook | Illinois towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,747 a month | $1,128 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 75% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Each of the 4 graded towns on its borders reports less crime per resident, from Westmont (B) to Clarendon Hills (A). Reported crimes fell from 135 to 108 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
20 within 15 miles of the center of Willowbrook
About 10 of every 100 Willowbrook residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Illinois.
Village in the United States
Willowbrook is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States, in the Chicago metropolitan area. Per the 2020 census, the population was 9,236. It is a southwestern suburb of Chicago.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Willowbrook.
All 4 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its A−; Westmont (A) is closest.
| Town | IL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willowbrook | #198 | A− | D | B− | A | A |
| Westmont | #148 | A | D | B | A | A |
| Darien | #75 | A | D | A− | A | A |
| Burr Ridge | #80 | A | D− | A− | A | A |
| Clarendon Hills | #1 | A+ | C | A | A+ | A+ |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Willowbrook grades A− overall, better than 83% of U.S. towns and #198 of 767 in Illinois. It grades A for health, B− for safety and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
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