Counties in Illinois by land in farms
McLean County had the highest land in farms of 102 counties in 1997, at 704,139 acres. DuPage County had the lowest, at 17,654 acres. The median was 255,138 acres and the figure for Illinois was 27,673,285 acres. Source: the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Map of counties, 1997
- Under 150K
- 150K to 200K
- 200K to 260K
- 260K to 310K
- 310K to 390K
- 390K and over
Top 40 counties, 1997
Full ranking
Other periods
About this ranking
Land operated by farms in the census year, in acres, including cropland, pasture, woodland and land under farm buildings, as counted by the USDA Census of Agriculture every five years.
Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.
How to cite
Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.Citation styles
APA 7
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. (2026). Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022) (Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997) [Data set]. Data Commons. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/
MLA 9
Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997. U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, 11 Oct. 2026, https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Data Commons, https://datacommons.org. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.
Chicago (author-date)
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service. 2026. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997. Dataset. Distributed by Data Commons. Accessed October 11, 2026. https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997.
Harvard
U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service (2026) Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022), Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997 [Dataset]. Via Data Commons. Available at: https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997 (Accessed: 11 October 2026).
BibTeX
@misc{department_counties_in_illinois_by_1997,
author = {{U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service}},
title = {{Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {Data set},
publisher = {Data Commons},
url = {https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/},
urldate = {2026-10-11},
note = {Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org). Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997. Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.},
}
RIS
TY - DATA
AU - U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service
TI - Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022): Counties in Illinois by land in farms, 1997
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/11
PB - Data Commons
DB - Invokely
UR - https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/
L2 - https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997
Y2 - 2026/10/11
N1 - Retrieved through Data Commons (https://datacommons.org).
N1 - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/land-in-farms/illinois-counties?period=1997.
N1 - Publisher attribution: Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture. Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved through Data Commons (datacommons.org). https://www.nass.usda.gov/AgCensus/. Retrieved 2026-10-11.
ER -
Use this data in your AI agent
Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:
Rank Counties in Illinois by land in farms using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"farmland_area","level":"province","within":"Illinois","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=farmland_area&level=province&within=Illinois&limit=10Questions
Which county has the highest land in farms?
McLean County, with 704,139 acres in 1997, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Which county has the lowest land in farms?
DuPage County, with 17,654 acres in 1997.
Where does this ranking come from?
Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Census of Agriculture: land in farms, acres, nation, states and counties (1997 to 2022). Retrieved 2026-10-11.