IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in Sterling, IL
Sterling is a big small town of 14,717 people in Whiteside County, Illinois. It's about 45 miles from Rockford, IL and 104 miles from Chicago, IL, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 83°F and winter highs 29°F, with about 29 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $109k and rent runs about $859 a month.
14,717people
$109kTypical home
$859/moRent
83° / 29°Summer / winter
29"Snow
230Sunny days
110Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Big small town of 14,717
- Its own small hub, not a suburb
- About 2,475 people per sq mi
- 104 mi to Chicago, IL
- 45 mi to Rockford, IL
- Has its own stores and services
Money
- Typical home $109k (≈$685/mo)
- Median rent $859/mo
- Median household income $57k
- Property tax about 2.4% of value
- 4.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 83°F
- Winter highs around 29°F
- Somewhat humid summers (dew point 63°F)
- 230 sunny days a year (85 totally clear)
- 135 cloudy days a year
- 45 of 90 winter days are gray
- 110 days a year with rain or snow
- 29" of snow a year
- 10 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 32 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
Safety
- Low violent crime (248 per 100k)
- Low property crime (1,118 per 100k)
People
- Median age 43
- 27% of households have kids
- 22% are 65 or older
- 21% have a college degree
- Mixed community
- 5% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 20 min
- 5% walk or take transit to work
- 41 mi to RFD airport
- 93 mi to ORD (major hub)
- 31 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 73% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1957
- 87% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Flat, open land
- Elevation 689 ft
- 691 mi to the ocean
- 101 mi to a big lake
- 3 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 51 mi to the nearest ski area
- 4 mi to the nearest campground
- 11 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 77 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 52 bars within 25 mi
- 12 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 16 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 50 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 34% of Illinois districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 4 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 29 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 6 mi to the nearest vet
- Dog park in town
- 12 congregations per 10k people
- 25 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Whiteside County: R+15 in 2024
- Illinois: D+11 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- High tornado risk
- Very low wildfire risk
- Very low earthquake risk
- Moderate flood risk
- Low drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Moderate heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk