IntelliMoveTake the quiz →
Small city

Living in Sycamore, IL

Sycamore is a small city of 18,559 people in DeKalb County, Illinois. It's about 27 miles from Rockford, IL and 52 miles from Chicago, IL, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 83°F and winter highs 28°F, with about 37 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $266k and rent runs about $1k a month.

18,559people
$266kTypical home
$1,140/moRent
83° / 28°Summer / winter
37"Snow
224Sunny days
119Rain/snow days

Is Sycamore right for you?

Take the 5-minute quiz and see your match — and how it stacks up against 34,000 other places.

Take the quiz →Open in the app

Size & setting

  • Small city of 18,559
  • Part of a metro area
  • About 1,834 people per sq mi
  • 52 mi to Chicago, IL
  • 27 mi to Rockford, IL
  • Has its own stores and services

Money

  • Typical home $266k (≈$1,676/mo)
  • Median rent $1,140/mo
  • Median household income $84k
  • Property tax about 2.5% of value
  • 3.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 83°F
  • Winter highs around 28°F
  • Somewhat humid summers (dew point 63°F)
  • 224 sunny days a year (79 totally clear)
  • 141 cloudy days a year
  • 47 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 119 days a year with rain or snow
  • 37" of snow a year
  • 12 days a year with 1"+ of snow
  • Rarely hits 100°F
  • 32 nights a year below 10°F
  • Breezy

Safety

  • Very low violent crime (57 per 100k)
  • Very low property crime (861 per 100k)

People

  • Median age 36
  • 31% of households have kids
  • 13% are 65 or older
  • 46% have a college degree
  • Mixed community
  • 9% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 29 min
  • 3% walk or take transit to work
  • 26 mi to RFD airport
  • 40 mi to ORD (major hub)
  • 31 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 75% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1993
  • 96% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Flat, open land
  • Elevation 837 ft
  • 645 mi to the ocean
  • 47 mi to a big lake
  • 5 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 23 mi to the nearest ski area
  • 16 mi to the nearest campground
  • 52 golf courses within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 682 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • 131 bars within 25 mi
  • 173 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • 1 music venue or club within 25 mi
  • 40 museums within 25 mi
  • 5 breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
  • 18 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the top 46% of Illinois districts (reading)
  • Grocery store in town
  • 8 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 8 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • 3 mi to the nearest vet
  • 2 mi to the nearest dog park
  • 6 congregations per 10k people
  • 6 mi to the nearest college

Politics

  • DeKalb County: Purple — split almost evenly
  • Illinois: D+11 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Very low hurricane risk
  • High tornado risk
  • Very low wildfire risk
  • Very low earthquake risk
  • Low flood risk
  • Very low drought risk
  • Moderate winter storm risk
  • Low heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

Places near Sycamore

More places in Illinois →