Data / Rankings / Population / Cities in Illinois

Cities in Illinois by population

Chicago, IL had the highest population of 225 cities in 2020, at 2.74 million. Mahomet, IL had the lowest, at 9,491. The median was 21,387 and the figure for Illinois was 12.8 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest2,741,640Chicago, IL
Lowest9,491Mahomet, IL
Median21,387225 cities
Illinois12,795,348History

Top 40 cities, 2020

Chicago, IL: 2,741,640 personsChicago, IL2,741,640Aurora, IL: 180,264 personsAurora, IL180,264Joliet, IL: 150,368 personsJoliet, IL150,368Naperville, IL: 149,384 personsNaperville, IL149,384Rockford, IL: 148,789 personsRockford, IL148,789Elgin, IL: 114,614 personsElgin, IL114,614Springfield, IL: 114,431 personsSpringfield, IL114,431Peoria, IL: 112,895 personsPeoria, IL112,895Waukegan, IL: 89,128 personsWaukegan, IL89,128Champaign, IL: 88,385 personsChampaign, IL88,385Cicero, IL: 84,944 personsCicero, IL84,944Bloomington, IL: 78,678 personsBloomington, IL78,678Schaumburg, IL: 78,444 personsSchaumburg, IL78,444Evanston, IL: 77,838 personsEvanston, IL77,838Arlington Heights, IL: 77,413 personsArlington Heights, IL77,413Bolingbrook, IL: 73,822 personsBolingbrook, IL73,822Decatur, IL: 71,225 personsDecatur, IL71,225Skokie, IL: 67,692 personsSkokie, IL67,692Palatine, IL: 67,663 personsPalatine, IL67,663Des Plaines, IL: 60,442 personsDes Plaines, IL60,442Orland Park, IL: 58,525 personsOrland Park, IL58,525Oak Lawn, IL: 58,124 personsOak Lawn, IL58,124Berwyn, IL: 57,006 personsBerwyn, IL57,006Mount Prospect, IL: 56,699 personsMount Prospect, IL56,699Tinley Park, IL: 55,835 personsTinley Park, IL55,835Oak Park, IL: 54,586 personsOak Park, IL54,586Wheaton, IL: 53,893 personsWheaton, IL53,893Normal, IL: 53,009 personsNormal, IL53,009Hoffman Estates, IL: 52,374 personsHoffman Estates, IL52,374Downers Grove, IL: 50,168 personsDowners Grove, IL50,168Glenview, IL: 48,476 personsGlenview, IL48,476Elmhurst, IL: 45,712 personsElmhurst, IL45,712Plainfield, IL: 44,955 personsPlainfield, IL44,955Lombard, IL: 44,422 personsLombard, IL44,422Buffalo Grove, IL: 43,083 personsBuffalo Grove, IL43,083Moline, IL: 42,864 personsMoline, IL42,864Belleville, IL: 42,251 personsBelleville, IL42,251Bartlett, IL: 41,025 personsBartlett, IL41,025Romeoville, IL: 40,809 personsRomeoville, IL40,809Crystal Lake, IL: 40,246 personsCrystal Lake, IL40,246Chicago, IL: 2,741,640 personsChicago, IL2,741,640Aurora, IL: 180,264 personsAurora, IL180,264Joliet, IL: 150,368 personsJoliet, IL150,368Naperville, IL: 149,384 personsNaperville, IL149,384Rockford, IL: 148,789 personsRockford, IL148,789Elgin, IL: 114,614 personsElgin, IL114,614Springfield, IL: 114,431 personsSpringfield, IL114,431Peoria, IL: 112,895 personsPeoria, IL112,895Waukegan, IL: 89,128 personsWaukegan, IL89,128Champaign, IL: 88,385 personsChampaign, IL88,385Cicero, IL: 84,944 personsCicero, IL84,944Bloomington, IL: 78,678 personsBloomington, IL78,678Schaumburg, IL: 78,444 personsSchaumburg, IL78,444Evanston, IL: 77,838 personsEvanston, IL77,838Arlington Heights, IL: 77,413 personsArlington Heights, IL77,413Bolingbrook, IL: 73,822 personsBolingbrook, IL73,822Decatur, IL: 71,225 personsDecatur, IL71,225Skokie, IL: 67,692 personsSkokie, IL67,692Palatine, IL: 67,663 personsPalatine, IL67,663Des Plaines, IL: 60,442 personsDes Plaines, IL60,442Orland Park, IL: 58,525 personsOrland Park, IL58,525Oak Lawn, IL: 58,124 personsOak Lawn, IL58,124Berwyn, IL: 57,006 personsBerwyn, IL57,006Mount Prospect, IL: 56,699 personsMount Prospect, IL56,699Tinley Park, IL: 55,835 personsTinley Park, IL55,835Oak Park, IL: 54,586 personsOak Park, IL54,586Wheaton, IL: 53,893 personsWheaton, IL53,893Normal, IL: 53,009 personsNormal, IL53,009Hoffman Estates, IL: 52,374 personsHoffman Estates, IL52,374Downers Grove, IL: 50,168 personsDowners Grove, IL50,168Glenview, IL: 48,476 personsGlenview, IL48,476Elmhurst, IL: 45,712 personsElmhurst, IL45,712Plainfield, IL: 44,955 personsPlainfield, IL44,955Lombard, IL: 44,422 personsLombard, IL44,422Buffalo Grove, IL: 43,083 personsBuffalo Grove, IL43,083Moline, IL: 42,864 personsMoline, IL42,864Belleville, IL: 42,251 personsBelleville, IL42,251Bartlett, IL: 41,025 personsBartlett, IL41,025Romeoville, IL: 40,809 personsRomeoville, IL40,809Crystal Lake, IL: 40,246 personsCrystal Lake, IL40,246
persons. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankCities2020
persons
1Chicago, IL2,741,640
2Aurora, IL180,264
3Joliet, IL150,368
4Naperville, IL149,384
5Rockford, IL148,789
6Elgin, IL114,614
7Springfield, IL114,431
8Peoria, IL112,895
9Waukegan, IL89,128
10Champaign, IL88,385
11Cicero, IL84,944
12Bloomington, IL78,678
13Schaumburg, IL78,444
14Evanston, IL77,838
15Arlington Heights, IL77,413
16Bolingbrook, IL73,822
17Decatur, IL71,225
18Skokie, IL67,692
19Palatine, IL67,663
20Des Plaines, IL60,442
21Orland Park, IL58,525
22Oak Lawn, IL58,124
23Berwyn, IL57,006
24Mount Prospect, IL56,699
25Tinley Park, IL55,835
26Oak Park, IL54,586
27Wheaton, IL53,893
28Normal, IL53,009
29Hoffman Estates, IL52,374
30Downers Grove, IL50,168
31Glenview, IL48,476
32Elmhurst, IL45,712
33Plainfield, IL44,955
34Lombard, IL44,422
35Buffalo Grove, IL43,083
36Moline, IL42,864
37Belleville, IL42,251
38Bartlett, IL41,025
39Romeoville, IL40,809
40Crystal Lake, IL40,246
41DeKalb, IL40,242
42Carol Stream, IL39,762
43Quincy, IL39,564
44Park Ridge, IL39,512
45Streamwood, IL39,434
46Wheeling, IL39,228
47Urbana, IL38,862
48Carpentersville, IL37,881
49Hanover Park, IL37,338
50Rock Island, IL37,006
51Calumet City, IL35,910
52Addison, IL35,631
53Northbrook, IL35,159
54Oswego, IL34,738
55Woodridge, IL34,111
56Glendale Heights, IL33,098
57St. Charles, IL33,073
58Elk Grove Village, IL32,845
59O'Fallon, IL32,410
60Pekin, IL31,801
61Mundelein, IL31,544
62Niles, IL30,813
63North Chicago, IL30,742
64Gurnee, IL30,650
65Highland Park, IL30,159
66Galesburg, IL29,949
67Algonquin, IL29,668
68Burbank, IL29,346
69Danville, IL29,124
70Lansing, IL28,963
71Glen Ellyn, IL28,956
72Lake in the Hills, IL28,927
73Wilmette, IL28,079
74Huntley, IL27,763
75Granite City, IL27,512
76McHenry, IL27,383
77Oak Forest, IL27,378
78Chicago Heights, IL27,377
79New Lenox, IL27,259
80Round Lake Beach, IL27,208
81Edwardsville, IL26,819
82Vernon Hills, IL26,815
83Batavia, IL26,495
84Lockport, IL26,150
85Woodstock, IL25,646
86Alton, IL25,640
87West Chicago, IL25,562
88Belvidere, IL25,274
89Morton Grove, IL25,207
90Zion, IL24,724
91Melrose Park, IL24,660
92Homer Glen, IL24,512
93Elmwood Park, IL24,429
94Westmont, IL24,405
95Collinsville, IL24,363
96Rolling Meadows, IL24,164
97Kankakee, IL23,996
98Freeport, IL23,958
99South Elgin, IL23,823
100Lisle, IL23,662
101Loves Park, IL23,431
102Maywood, IL23,420
103Machesney Park, IL22,932
104Roselle, IL22,923
105Blue Island, IL22,473
106East Peoria, IL22,450
107Bloomingdale, IL22,344
108Carbondale, IL22,285
109Villa Park, IL22,200
110Darien, IL21,999
111Yorkville, IL21,766
112Park Forest, IL21,605
113South Holland, IL21,387
114Geneva, IL21,333
115Dolton, IL21,327
116East Moline, IL21,301
117Grayslake, IL21,224
118Libertyville, IL20,561
119Montgomery, IL20,440
120Crest Hill, IL20,409
121Frankfort, IL20,314
122Harvey, IL20,247
123Evergreen Park, IL19,866
124Mokena, IL19,858
125Lake Zurich, IL19,788
126Brookfield, IL19,446
127Homewood, IL19,378
128Lake Forest, IL19,350
129Deerfield, IL19,129
130Matteson, IL19,020
131Alsip, IL19,008
132Ottawa, IL18,803
133Bensenville, IL18,758
134Bellwood, IL18,721
135Round Lake, IL18,689
136Sycamore, IL18,649
137Palos Hills, IL18,461
138East St. Louis, IL18,431
139Franklin Park, IL18,342
140North Aurora, IL18,312
141Jacksonville, IL18,242
142Shorewood, IL18,179
143Bourbonnais, IL18,097
144Cahokia Heights, IL17,820
145Godfrey, IL17,805
146Cary, IL17,803
146Lemont, IL17,803
148Charleston, IL17,574
149Hinsdale, IL17,375
150Morton, IL17,172
151Bridgeview, IL16,962
152Mattoon, IL16,857
153Marion, IL16,836
154Westchester, IL16,830
155Country Club Hills, IL16,712
156Fairview Heights, IL16,694
157La Grange, IL16,297
158Washington, IL16,069
159Prospect Heights, IL15,990
160Bradley, IL15,386
161Macomb, IL15,361
162Dixon, IL15,349
163Norridge, IL15,205
164Sterling, IL14,839
165Antioch, IL14,610
166Mount Vernon, IL14,566
167Hickory Hills, IL14,455
168Chatham, IL14,425
169Chicago Ridge, IL14,407
170Lindenhurst, IL14,376
171Swansea, IL14,336
172Forest Park, IL14,279
173Midlothian, IL14,248
174Morris, IL14,230
175Beach Park, IL14,228
176Wood Dale, IL14,217
177Shiloh, IL14,098
178Wauconda, IL14,067
179Glen Carbon, IL13,862
180Warrenville, IL13,703
181La Grange Park, IL13,699
182Western Springs, IL13,591
183Channahon, IL13,470
184Hazel Crest, IL13,427
185Lincolnwood, IL13,413
186Canton, IL13,357
187Lincoln, IL13,247
188Northlake, IL12,829
189Minooka, IL12,742
190Richton Park, IL12,737
191Winnetka, IL12,704
192Justice, IL12,568
193Kewanee, IL12,464
194Streator, IL12,462
195Palos Heights, IL12,421
196Herrin, IL12,335
197Effingham, IL12,330
198Rantoul, IL12,322
199River Forest, IL12,220
200Centralia, IL12,118
201Plano, IL11,906
202Schiller Park, IL11,666
203Markham, IL11,619
204Troy, IL11,433
205Pontiac, IL11,199
206Burr Ridge, IL11,169
207Summit, IL11,117
208Columbia, IL11,039
209Roscoe, IL10,999
210Waterloo, IL10,994
211Fox Lake, IL10,962
212Worth, IL10,931
213Campton Hills, IL10,861
214Crestwood, IL10,781
215Lyons, IL10,773
216Barrington, IL10,709
217Riverdale, IL10,622
218River Grove, IL10,573
219Taylorville, IL10,494
220Wood River, IL10,430
221Pingree Grove, IL10,419
222Highland, IL10,077
223Winfield, IL9,822
224Manhattan, IL9,528
225Mahomet, IL9,491

Other periods

About this ranking

Resident population.

More on how it is measured
  • Spain and the EU: 1 January, with Spanish figures from the official municipal register (Padrón).
  • Norway: Statistics Norway, 1 January.
  • Iceland and its municipalities: Statistics Iceland, 1 January.
  • United States: Census Bureau population estimates for 1 July.
  • United Kingdom regions and local authorities: Office for National Statistics estimates for 30 June.
  • Other countries and the World: World Bank mid-year estimates, which count all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.
  • UN World Population Prospects estimates for 1 July cover the years before 1960 and the areas the World Bank does not publish, such as Taiwan.

The World Bank series exists for every country, so use it (through compare) to rank countries on one basis.

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. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. 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. Census Bureau. (2026). Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals) (Cities in Illinois by population, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/

MLA 9

Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in Illinois by population, 2020. U.S. Census Bureau, 14 May 2026, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2026. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Cities in Illinois by population, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2026) Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals), Cities in Illinois by population, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_cities_in_illinois_by_2020,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in Illinois by population, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals): Cities in Illinois by population, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/14
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/population/illinois-cities?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/datasets/2020-2025/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Rank Cities in Illinois by population using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which city has the highest population?

Chicago, IL, with 2.74 million in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which city has the lowest population?

Mahomet, IL, with 9,491 in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual estimates of the resident population for incorporated places, 1 July (Population Estimates Program, subcounty totals). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Population: other rankings

Cities in Illinois: more rankings