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Place dossier plate
SheetIL-WESTERN-SPRINGS-IL · Western Springs, IL 13,353 pop · income 99th pct
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Western Springs
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Western Springs on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Washington · lowest
52,350
Washington · lowest
52,350 median HH income
23.9% of the leader · rank #1
Williams Creek · near
218,750
Williams Creek · near
218,750 median HH income
99.8% of the leader · rank #2
Bingham Farms · near
218,750
Bingham Farms · near
218,750 median HH income
99.8% of the leader · rank #3
Bentleyville · near
218,750
Bentleyville · near
218,750 median HH income
99.8% of the leader · rank #4
Rose Valley · near
218,750
Rose Valley · near
218,750 median HH income
99.8% of the leader · rank #5
Western Sprin… · this city
218,839
Western Sprin… · this city
218,839 median HH income
99.8% of the leader · rank #6
Belle Mead · highest
219,215
Belle Mead · highest
219,215 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Western Springs on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 13,353.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Western Springs - the verdict
Out of every US city with 1,000+ residents, Western Springs places in the 99th percentile for household income and the 93rd percentile for safety. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
99th
percentile, household income
92nd
percentile, home value
18th
percentile, median rent
93rd
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Western Springs, IL
Illinois's Western Springs is a small town, with 13,353 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. Western Springs households earn a median of $218,839 annually, placing it in the top quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 1.5%. Western Springs's housing stock carries a median value of $691,300, and the median resident age is 41.8 years. About 82.0% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, while 62.8% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
Housing supply pressure shows in Census Building Permit Survey data: 30 residential units were authorized in 2024 (Stable), down 3% from five years earlier. Western Springs reports a comparatively low crime rate: per-100,000 total crime stands at 280.5 in FBI UCR data, below the national average (a voluntary reporting program, read this as reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
Illinois tracks close to the national cost-of-living baseline: the state registers 100.0 on a 100-equals-national-average index (Near Average) per BEA Regional Price Parities 2024. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $1,063 per month statewide. Statewide, average monthly utility bills in Illinois run around $240, per EIA 2023 residential energy data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 54.5 out of 100 (Low).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Western Springs's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from schools and households to comparison shortlist to population change to housing and income to work and mobility to reported crime; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Western Springs, city-specific coverage includes annual population history, FBI reported-crime rates, commute-mode shares, matched public-school count, local building permits.
No matched row is reported here for within-city Census tract profiles; the page leaves those layers out instead of substituting a statewide or national value.
1. Schools and households
What does the education layer cover for Western Springs?
The city has a broader matched school footprint, but count alone does not describe performance, capacity, program availability, or attendance boundaries. This profile deliberately avoids converting it into an unsupported family-friendliness score.
The NCES join finds 4 public schools within the city match. 82.0% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
Which cities make useful reference points for Western Springs?
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
Within Illinois, the closest population matches are Lincoln (13,406 residents, $54,390 income); Canton (13,408 residents, $54,881 income); La Grange Park (13,227 residents, $119,115 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Pell City, AL (13,353 residents); Atlantic Beach, FL (13,353 residents); Lake Forest Park, WA (13,356 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Is Western Springs growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Census PEP estimates show the population declined by -3 residents from 2020 to 2025, a -0.0% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 30 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
The recent population line is broadly flat. That makes the composition of change more important than the headline count: housing turnover, household size, and age structure can shift even when the total barely moves.
How far does income reach against housing in Western Springs?
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Income and home value move within the same broad scale here. The useful next check is not a generic affordability label, but whether similar-size cities offer a materially different income, housing, or commute trade-off.
The home-value-to-income reference sits in a middle range: the ACS median home value is 3.2 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 1.5%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Work and mobility
What does the journey to work look like in Western Springs?
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 57.1%. A reliable mean commute time is not available for this row, so the mode shares carry the comparison.
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. Remote work has a visible role in the local pattern. That can reduce commute exposure for some workers, but it says nothing about job availability or broadband quality; read it alongside income and housing rather than as a stand-alone lifestyle score.
Drive alone
57.1%
Work from home
27.8%
Public transit
11.3%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 5,890 workers age 16+.
What can the FBI record say about safety in Western Springs?
The joined FBI UCR record reports 280.5 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, below the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 88% lower in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
Total reported rate
280.5
Violent rate
7.6
Property rate
272.9
FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, incidents per 100,000. Voluntary agency reporting; not a danger score.
Above-average cost · BEA RPP 2024, Illinois average
A
City profile score · Western Springs, IL
85/100
5 published dimensions · ACS/FBI 2023
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Household income A+
$218,839
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share A+
82.0%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Violent crime A+
8 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Poverty rate A
1.5%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Cost of living D
100.0 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Western Springs profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Household income: 100/100 (A+) · $218,839
Bachelor's+ share: 100/100 (A+) · 82.0%
Violent crime: 95/100 (A+) · 8 /100k
Poverty rate: 89/100 (A) · 1.5%
Cost of living: 40/100 (D) · 100.0 index
Where Western Springs sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Western Springs's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Western Springs highlighted among 10 peers.Read the chart values
Western Springs, IL (this city): home $691,300, crime 281/100k
Pell City, AL : home $238,100, crime 2,498/100k
Atlantic Beach, FL : home $565,500, crime 1,652/100k
Lake Forest Park, WA : home $928,700, crime 1,748/100k
Henderson, TX : home $166,900, crime 3,163/100k
Lincoln, IL : home $111,600, crime 1,183/100k
La Grange Park, IL : home $427,800, crime 699/100k
Hazel Crest, IL : home $181,400, crime 3,233/100k
Glen Carbon, IL : home $278,200, crime 1,168/100k
Lincolnwood, IL : home $475,400, crime 2,638/100k
How does Western Springs compare to other US cities?
Where Western Springs sits among all US cities (population 1,000+) on each measure, computed live from Census and FBI data.
Household income99% higher than other cities
Home value92% pricier than other cities
Median rent18% pricier than other cities
Safety93% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at Illinois, Western Springs ranks #61 of 455 Illinois cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Western Springs against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to Illinois only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
Illinois-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Western Springs near the bottom of Illinois's cities
Among the 1,336 Illinois cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Western Springs ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Western Springs only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#12 of 1,311
99th percentile in Illinois
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 1,336
0th percentile in Illinois
Median Home Value
#20 of 1,315
98th percentile in Illinois
Poverty Rate
#1,162 of 1,335
12th percentile in Illinois
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#7 of 1,336
99th percentile in Illinois
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within Illinois only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
99th percentile nationally for median household income · 93rd percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Western Springs's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Western Springs's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Western Springs's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$691,3008th percentilemore affordable than 8% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Western Springs's home-value-to-income ratio: 3.2×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#7,486 of 15,516
More affordable than 52% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#1,127 of 3,317
Small cities (10,000–49,999)
At 3.2×, Western Springs sits in the moderate band:
national rank #7,486 of 15,516 and #1,127 of 3,317small cities (10,000–49,999).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$218,839Western Springs, IL median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Western Springs, IL median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Western Springs, IL.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)82.0%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)1.5%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)62.8%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
13,353
Median Income
$218,839
Median Home Value
$691,300
Median Age
41.8
Poverty Rate
1.5%
Labor force participation
62.8%
Bachelor's Degree+
82.0%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
280.5
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
7.6
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
272.9
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
4
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Western Springs's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
13,591 residents
2021
13,401 residents
2022
13,313 residents
2023
13,397 residents
2024
13,536 residents
2025
13,588 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
🏗️ Stable
Total Permits (2024)
30
housing units authorized
Single-Family
30
detached homes
Multifamily
0
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
2.2
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
31
31
0
$16.3M
2020
24
20
4
$11.7M
2021
41
41
0
$21.5M
2022
44
29
15
$23.5M
2023
21
21
0
$11.6M
2024
30
30
0
$16.7M
Permit volume decreased 3% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Drive Alone
57.1%
Carpool
1.6%
Public Transit
11.3%
Walk
1.5%
Work from Home
27.8%
Other
0.7%
Based on 5,890 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
Illinois statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $240
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across Illinois at $240 (electricity about $100 , water and sewer about $50 ).
These are Illinois statewide averages, not a meter reading for Western Springs. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
Illinois's BEA cost-of-living index is 100.0 (Near Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Western Springs is $1,063/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to Illinois statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 54.5 / 100 (Low).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a Illinois statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Western Springs sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Western Springs compares to similar-size Illinois cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.