?WhereToHQ

Ranked · Renting · Illinois

Best cities for renters in Illinois

Cities of 25,000+ residents, scored with the “Renting” weighting the live tool uses, heaviest on 2-bedroom rent, 1-bedroom rent, rent yoy, walkability. Scores are relative to this set; open the tool to change the weights and re-rank.

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Top 10 · computed ranking

  1. 1.Decatur, IL70k residents

    61/100

    2-bedroom rent: $860/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $679/mo · walkability: 34/100

  2. 2.Rock Island, IL36k residents

    61/100

    2-bedroom rent: $899/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $587/mo · walkability: 30/100

  3. 3.Normal, IL54k residents

    59/100

    2-bedroom rent: $987/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $881/mo · walkability: 34/100

  4. 4.Peoria, IL112k residents

    58/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,088/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $776/mo · walkability: 38/100

  5. 5.Bloomington, IL79k residents

    56/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,105/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $775/mo · walkability: 34/100

  6. 6.Quincy, IL39k residents

    55/100

    2-bedroom rent: $921/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $668/mo · walkability: 30/100

  7. 7.Springfield, IL113k residents

    54/100

    2-bedroom rent: $997/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $765/mo · walkability: 38/100

  8. 8.Moline, IL42k residents

    54/100

    2-bedroom rent: $941/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $767/mo · walkability: 30/100

  9. 9.Waukegan, IL89k residents

    52/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,222/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $999/mo · walkability: 34/100

  10. 10.Joliet, IL150k residents

    50/100

    2-bedroom rent: $1,312/mo · 1-bedroom rent: $914/mo · walkability: 38/100

Methodology: each city is scored 0–100 by min–max normalizing every weighted facet across this candidate set (direction-aware), identical math to the tool's “Best fit” tab. A different weighting produces a different order, which is the point: this is a starting shortlist, not a verdict.

Questions & answers
Which city is best for renters in Illinois?
Decatur, IL ranks first with a fit score of 61/100, followed by Rock Island (61) and Normal (59), using the "Renting" weighting.
How is this ranking calculated?
Each of the 10 candidate cities (25,000+ residents) is scored 0 to 100 by min-max normalizing the weighted facets, heaviest on 2-bedroom rent, 1-bedroom rent, rent yoy, walkability, across this set. Change the weights in the live tool and the order changes with them.