Dell Rhea's Chicken Basket · Photo: Marcin Wichary · CC BY 2.0Households in Willowbrook earn more than those in 76% of U.S. towns
For a town this walkable, transit is thin: about 0.1 trips an hour at the evening peak near the typical resident, next to 36.9 in Chicago. Poverty touches 6.6% of residents (Illinois 11.8%). The two grades for Willowbrook are A− for jobs and income and A for walkability.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
The work figures that set Willowbrook apart
Willowbrook draws workers from far and wide
The 6,745 jobs in Willowbrook are filled from a wide area. The ten biggest home towns of its workers supply 29%; the other 69% come from many towns beyond those. The commute map ↓
Willowbrook is where the jobs are
Willowbrook has 6,745 jobs, 1.6 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Willowbrook and Chicago trade workers both ways
Chicago is the top workplace for Willowbrook residents (26%) and also where the most people who work in Willowbrook come from (12% of its jobs). The commute map ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in Willowbrook
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, Willowbrook is better than 84% of U.S. towns, #196 of 768 in Illinois. Job access by car holds Willowbrook’s grade up (among the top U.S. towns); unemployment pulls it down (4.4%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income and the poverty rate.
A fairly firm grade. Within the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, Willowbrook could be anywhere from B+ to A+.
Who travels to work in Willowbrook, and from where
Where Willowbrook clocks in
26% of workers
4% of workers
3% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
Willowbrook fills up on a workday
On a workday 4,053 residents head out to work, 104 work right here, and 6,641 people come in from elsewhere.
About 12,000 people are in Willowbrook on a workday afternoon, 28% more than live here.
1.6 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
In Willowbrook, 28% of jobs are in factories, building or farming
6,745 jobs are based in Willowbrook.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in Willowbrook, 2013 → 2023: 6,571 → 6,745. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs Willowbrook’s own residents hold wherever they work.
About 27 minutes each way for Willowbrook’s commuters
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 8.5 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of Willowbrook workers work from home, vs 16% across Illinois. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 4,132 commuters (the 12% who work from home are left out). Across Illinois: 78% drive alone, 7% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
The distance from Willowbrook to work
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
Good to walk, short on transit: Willowbrook
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, Willowbrook is more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns, #174 of 768 in Illinois. Both inputs place Willowbrook near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 4,680 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 1% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 0% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 0.1 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, more than in 42% of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 5.9% of Willowbrook households have no vehicle (Illinois 11.0%, U.S. 8.4%). 5% of Willowbrook’s commuters take a bus or train.
680th of 2,855: where Willowbrook ranks among U.S. towns of 6,400 to 12,300
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Des Peres MO | 9,102 | $224K | 2.0% | 0.5% | 5% | A+ |
| 2 | Pimmit Hills VA | 6,589 | $173K | 1.6% | 1.3% | 3% | A+ |
| 3 | Braddock VA | 6,536 | $212K | 0.9% | 1.0% | 2% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 9 | Long Grove IL | 8,343 | $250K | 1.2% | 2.1% | 1% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 23 | Riverside IL | 8,939 | $154K | 3.3% | 1.9% | 4% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 60 | Itasca IL | 9,488 | $114K | 2.0% | 2.6% | 7% | A+ |
| … | |||||||
| 678 | Cheat Lake WV | 10,902 | $117K | 6.5% | 2.2% | 6% | A− |
| 679 | North Riverside IL | 7,161 | $77K | 7.9% | 2.4% | 2% | A− |
| 680 | Willowbrook IL | 9,126 | $99K | 6.6% | 4.4% | 3% | A− |
| 681 | Fort Mitchell KY | 8,751 | $86K | 8.1% | 2.4% | 5% | A− |
| 682 | Chesapeake Beach MD | 6,466 | $139K | 2.8% | 2.0% | 6% | A− |
| … | |||||||
| 2,855 | Shiprock NM | 7,610 | $36K | 34.6% | 14.9% | 14% | D− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of Willowbrook, the top three, the last and three more from Illinois.
Next door to Willowbrook
The biggest share goes to Westmont (2%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | Willowbrook workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Willowbrook | – | A− | A | 27 min | $99,239 |
| Westmont | 2% | A− | A | 27 min | $88,090 |
| Darien | 2% | A | A | 29 min | $111,215 |
| Burr Ridge | 2% | A+ | A | 29 min | $156,829 |
| Clarendon Hills | under 2% | A | A+ | 29 min | $130,388 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of Willowbrook’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in Willowbrook: questions
What is the median household income in Willowbrook?
$99,239 (±$4,413) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $83,390 across Illinois and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in Willowbrook?
6.6%, against 11.8% across Illinois and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from Willowbrook?
27 minutes each way on average, against 28 across Illinois and 26 nationally. 12% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in Willowbrook work?
3% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Chicago (26%, 14 mi), Downers Grove (4%, 4 mi), Naperville (3%, 11 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is Willowbrook walkable?
Willowbrook is more walkable than 87% of U.S. towns (Walkability A): an EPA walkability index of 9.4 out of 20, and 6% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around Willowbrook without a car?
5% of commuters take transit and 6% of households have no car. 0% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from Willowbrook, from the people who make the trip.
More of Willowbrook
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.