Data / Rankings / Employed residents / Cities in Illinois

Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025

Chicago, IL had the highest employed residents of 104 cities in 2025, at 1.42 million. East St. Louis, IL had the lowest, at 6,160. The median was 18,598. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Highest1,422,279Chicago, IL
Lowest6,160East St. Louis, IL
Median18,598104 cities

Top 40 cities, 2025

Chicago, IL: 1,422,279 personsChicago, IL1,422,279Aurora, IL: 93,157 personsAurora, IL93,157Naperville, IL: 80,314 personsNaperville, IL80,314Joliet, IL: 77,581 personsJoliet, IL77,581Rockford, IL: 60,554 personsRockford, IL60,554Elgin, IL: 56,097 personsElgin, IL56,097Springfield, IL: 50,211 personsSpringfield, IL50,211Peoria, IL: 48,722 personsPeoria, IL48,722Champaign, IL: 45,040 personsChampaign, IL45,040Waukegan, IL: 42,735 personsWaukegan, IL42,735Bolingbrook, IL: 41,499 personsBolingbrook, IL41,499Bloomington, IL: 41,318 personsBloomington, IL41,318Schaumburg, IL: 41,248 personsSchaumburg, IL41,248Arlington Heights, IL: 39,906 personsArlington Heights, IL39,906Cicero, IL: 39,851 personsCicero, IL39,851Evanston, IL: 38,595 personsEvanston, IL38,595Palatine, IL: 37,381 personsPalatine, IL37,381Skokie, IL: 31,956 personsSkokie, IL31,956Des Plaines, IL: 31,109 personsDes Plaines, IL31,109Mount Prospect, IL: 29,590 personsMount Prospect, IL29,590Berwyn, IL: 29,192 personsBerwyn, IL29,192Orland Park, IL: 28,783 personsOrland Park, IL28,783Tinley Park, IL: 28,680 personsTinley Park, IL28,680Oak Park, IL: 28,494 personsOak Park, IL28,494Hoffman Estates, IL: 27,974 personsHoffman Estates, IL27,974Normal, IL: 27,745 personsNormal, IL27,745Wheaton, IL: 27,637 personsWheaton, IL27,637Oak Lawn, IL: 27,416 personsOak Lawn, IL27,416Decatur, IL: 27,291 personsDecatur, IL27,291Downers Grove, IL: 27,104 personsDowners Grove, IL27,104Plainfield, IL: 25,783 personsPlainfield, IL25,783Lombard, IL: 25,284 personsLombard, IL25,284Bartlett, IL: 23,630 personsBartlett, IL23,630Romeoville, IL: 23,530 personsRomeoville, IL23,530Elmhurst, IL: 23,293 personsElmhurst, IL23,293Glenview, IL: 23,245 personsGlenview, IL23,245Crystal Lake, IL: 22,847 personsCrystal Lake, IL22,847Buffalo Grove, IL: 22,679 personsBuffalo Grove, IL22,679Wheeling, IL: 22,085 personsWheeling, IL22,085Carol Stream, IL: 22,083 personsCarol Stream, IL22,083Chicago, IL: 1,422,279 personsChicago, IL1,422,279Aurora, IL: 93,157 personsAurora, IL93,157Naperville, IL: 80,314 personsNaperville, IL80,314Joliet, IL: 77,581 personsJoliet, IL77,581Rockford, IL: 60,554 personsRockford, IL60,554Elgin, IL: 56,097 personsElgin, IL56,097Springfield, IL: 50,211 personsSpringfield, IL50,211Peoria, IL: 48,722 personsPeoria, IL48,722Champaign, IL: 45,040 personsChampaign, IL45,040Waukegan, IL: 42,735 personsWaukegan, IL42,735Bolingbrook, IL: 41,499 personsBolingbrook, IL41,499Bloomington, IL: 41,318 personsBloomington, IL41,318Schaumburg, IL: 41,248 personsSchaumburg, IL41,248Arlington Heights, IL: 39,906 personsArlington Heights, IL39,906Cicero, IL: 39,851 personsCicero, IL39,851Evanston, IL: 38,595 personsEvanston, IL38,595Palatine, IL: 37,381 personsPalatine, IL37,381Skokie, IL: 31,956 personsSkokie, IL31,956Des Plaines, IL: 31,109 personsDes Plaines, IL31,109Mount Prospect, IL: 29,590 personsMount Prospect, IL29,590Berwyn, IL: 29,192 personsBerwyn, IL29,192Orland Park, IL: 28,783 personsOrland Park, IL28,783Tinley Park, IL: 28,680 personsTinley Park, IL28,680Oak Park, IL: 28,494 personsOak Park, IL28,494Hoffman Estates, IL: 27,974 personsHoffman Estates, IL27,974Normal, IL: 27,745 personsNormal, IL27,745Wheaton, IL: 27,637 personsWheaton, IL27,637Oak Lawn, IL: 27,416 personsOak Lawn, IL27,416Decatur, IL: 27,291 personsDecatur, IL27,291Downers Grove, IL: 27,104 personsDowners Grove, IL27,104Plainfield, IL: 25,783 personsPlainfield, IL25,783Lombard, IL: 25,284 personsLombard, IL25,284Bartlett, IL: 23,630 personsBartlett, IL23,630Romeoville, IL: 23,530 personsRomeoville, IL23,530Elmhurst, IL: 23,293 personsElmhurst, IL23,293Glenview, IL: 23,245 personsGlenview, IL23,245Crystal Lake, IL: 22,847 personsCrystal Lake, IL22,847Buffalo Grove, IL: 22,679 personsBuffalo Grove, IL22,679Wheeling, IL: 22,085 personsWheeling, IL22,085Carol Stream, IL: 22,083 personsCarol Stream, IL22,083
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2025
persons		Change on 2024
1Chicago, IL1,422,279+0.6%
2Aurora, IL93,157-0.5%
3Naperville, IL80,314+0.6%
4Joliet, IL77,581+0.4%
5Rockford, IL60,554-2%
6Elgin, IL56,097-0.7%
7Springfield, IL50,211-4.3%
8Peoria, IL48,722-2.1%
9Champaign, IL45,040-1.1%
10Waukegan, IL42,735-1.1%
11Bolingbrook, IL41,499+0.6%
12Bloomington, IL41,318-3.4%
13Schaumburg, IL41,248+0.6%
14Arlington Heights, IL39,906+0.6%
15Cicero, IL39,851+0.6%
16Evanston, IL38,595+0.6%
17Palatine, IL37,381+0.6%
18Skokie, IL31,956+0.6%
19Des Plaines, IL31,109+0.6%
20Mount Prospect, IL29,590+0.6%
21Berwyn, IL29,192+0.6%
22Orland Park, IL28,783+0.6%
23Tinley Park, IL28,680+0.6%
24Oak Park, IL28,494+0.6%
25Hoffman Estates, IL27,974+0.6%
26Normal, IL27,745-3.4%
27Wheaton, IL27,637+0.6%
28Oak Lawn, IL27,416+0.6%
29Decatur, IL27,291-1.2%
30Downers Grove, IL27,104+0.6%
31Plainfield, IL25,783+0.5%
32Lombard, IL25,284+0.6%
33Bartlett, IL23,630+0.6%
34Romeoville, IL23,530+0.6%
35Elmhurst, IL23,293+0.6%
36Glenview, IL23,245+0.6%
37Crystal Lake, IL22,847+0.5%
38Buffalo Grove, IL22,679-0.5%
39Wheeling, IL22,085+0.6%
40Carol Stream, IL22,083+0.6%
41Streamwood, IL21,232+0.6%
42Addison, IL20,259+0.6%
43Urbana, IL19,903-1.1%
44Oswego, IL19,802-1.1%
45Park Ridge, IL19,724+0.6%
46Moline, IL19,436-0.8%
47Woodridge, IL19,402+0.6%
48DeKalb, IL19,352-1.3%
49Belleville, IL19,159-1.6%
50Quincy, IL18,940-1.2%
51Hanover Park, IL18,749+0.6%
52Carpentersville, IL18,609-1.1%
53Glendale Heights, IL18,587+0.6%
54St. Charles, IL17,775-1.1%
55Algonquin, IL17,683+0.1%
56Mundelein, IL17,093-1.1%
57Elk Grove Village, IL17,015+0.6%
58Northbrook, IL16,868+0.6%
59McHenry, IL16,261+0.5%
60Rock Island, IL16,150-0.8%
61Calumet City, IL15,991+0.6%
62Gurnee, IL15,988-1.1%
63Lake in the Hills, IL15,766+0.5%
64Lockport, IL15,448+0.6%
65New Lenox, IL15,025+0.6%
66O'Fallon, IL14,669-1.6%
67Oak Forest, IL14,636+0.6%
68Highland Park, IL14,386-1.1%
69Woodstock, IL14,362+0.5%
70Glen Ellyn, IL14,072+0.6%
71Niles, IL13,923+0.6%
72Pekin, IL13,808-2.2%
73Burbank, IL13,675+0.6%
74Lansing, IL13,657+0.6%
75Vernon Hills, IL13,650-1.1%
76Batavia, IL13,609-1.1%
77West Chicago, IL13,591+0.6%
78Round Lake Beach, IL13,418-1.1%
79Yorkville, IL13,415-1.1%
80Edwardsville, IL12,771-1.6%
81Westmont, IL12,442+0.6%
82Collinsville, IL12,419-1.6%
83Wilmette, IL12,253+0.6%
84Morton Grove, IL12,168+0.6%
85Huntley, IL12,165+0.4%
86Melrose Park, IL12,109+0.6%
87Belvidere, IL12,094-2.2%
88Granite City, IL12,032-1.6%
89Homer Glen, IL12,015+0.6%
90Elmwood Park, IL11,919+0.6%
91Zion, IL11,563-1.1%
92Alton, IL11,311-1.6%
93Galesburg, IL10,935-2.2%
94Chicago Heights, IL10,856+0.6%
95Freeport, IL10,108-1.4%
96Danville, IL10,022-2.3%
97Park Forest, IL9,971+0.6%
98Maywood, IL9,568+0.6%
99Carbondale, IL9,552-0.3%
100North Chicago, IL9,248-1.1%
101Kankakee, IL9,157-1.5%
102Dolton, IL8,701+0.6%
103Harvey, IL8,179+0.6%
104East St. Louis, IL6,160-1.6%

Other periods

About this ranking

Residents who did any work for pay or profit in the reference week, or were temporarily absent from a job, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. Counts people where they live, whatever the place of work, and someone with two jobs counts once. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the cities are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average (Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average, Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average, Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_cities_in_illinois_by_2025,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average: Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average: Cities in Illinois by employed residents, 2025
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employed-residents/illinois-cities.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in Illinois by employed residents using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest employed residents?

Chicago, IL, with 1.42 million in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which city has the lowest employed residents?

East St. Louis, IL, with 6,160 in 2025.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: employment (measure 05), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Employed residents: other rankings

Cities in Illinois: more rankings