Darien, Illinois

Area Profile

21,879 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Darien, in DuPage County.

67out of 100
Area Score
Top 21% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 16 sources
Opportunity2,606th of 4,199 cities measured50
SchoolsTop 17% of 4,162 cities measured76
GrowthTop 37% of 4,224 cities measured56
Housing affordabilityTop 33% of 4,218 cities measured72
Climate3,081st of 4,225 cities measured63
Physical resilienceTop 22% of 4,226 cities measured81
AccessTop 49% of 4,226 cities measured93
Economic stabilityTop 4% of 4,226 cities measured80
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.5% and median household income $111,215, putting employment conditions in the middle range of cities measured. The unemployment rate is published for DuPage County, IL, which contains Darien, rather than for Darien alone.

Public schools test above most of the state: 47% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 17% of published profiles for schools.

Rent takes 29% of renter income here, below the 30% threshold conventionally called cost-burdened, and the median home is 3.3 times what its owners earn.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
21,879
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$111,215
Top 13% nationally
Density
3,544/sq mi
6.2 sq mi of land
Median age
44.4
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Illinois
Nearest major airport
ORD
16 mi · Chicago O'Hare Intl
Median home value
$398,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across DuPage County, IL, which contains Darien, is 4.5% — higher than in all but 43% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across DuPage County, IL, which contains Darien, fell 3.2% over the past year, to 488,085 employed residents.

52% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 90% of measured US cities.

Median household income of $111,215 is higher than in 87% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsDuPage County, IL’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$100,25681st percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftDuPage County, IL’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$100,22784th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$8,9512024 ACS 5-Year$111,215Top 13%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$3,7032024 ACS 5-Year$55,898Top 12%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year4.3%Top 21%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±1.6 min2024 ACS 5-Year31.1 minBottom 29%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year52.4%Top 10%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year68.9%25th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentDuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 2026488,085Top 16%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)DuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 2026−1.2%Bottom 36%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)DuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 2026−3.2%Bottom 6%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceDuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 2026510,83584th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year87.3%Top 17%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageChicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$73,380Top 36%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageChicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$54,720Top 39%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year2.7%92nd percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)DuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 2026+0.4%Bottom 23%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateDuPage County, IL’s figureJuly 20264.5%Bottom 43%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year20.5%86th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

2021202220232024111k104k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $111,215 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand157,920$40,550
General and Operations Managers122,930$109,390
Home Health and Personal Care Aides108,520$38,180
Registered Nurses100,240$100,490
Cashiers99,240$35,010
Fast Food and Counter Workers97,280$34,630

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for DuPage County, IL, which contains this city.

47% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 48% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 12.3 students for every full-time teacher across 7 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
9
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
12.3
across 7 of them
Math proficiency
46.6%
Top 26% in Illinois
Reading proficiency
47.6%
Top 28% in Illinois
All 9 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Hinsdale South High SchoolHinsdale Twp HSD 861,37012.746%44%
Concord Elem SchoolCass SD 6346012.467%62%
Mark DeLay SchoolDarien SD 6145312.6——
Elizabeth Ide Elem SchoolCenter Cass SD 6641017.1——
Eisenhower Jr High SchoolDarien SD 614079.533%33%
Lace Elem SchoolDarien SD 6137711.140%46%
Cass Jr High SchoolCass SD 6331312.045%63%
LADSE-DHH-Hinsdale South HSLagrange Area Dept Spec Ed-Ladse0———
HSD 86 Adult Opportunties PgmHinsdale Twp HSD 860———

27.8% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Illinois’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 2% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 102.5, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metropolitan Division is up 46% over five years, and up 6.2% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $7,119 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.79% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $2,010, some 8% above the $1,857 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $2,010 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $80,400 a year, about 72% of the median household income here of $111,215.

The typical renter household here spends 29% of its income on rent, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,857 a month.

A median home at $398,700 costs 3.3 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $119,763, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
102.5

Prices here run about 2% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.

Rent as a share of income
28.5%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.3×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$2,010
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,857
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$398,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Darien’s median household income of $111,215, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Metro Area’s figure2023102.5Bottom 47%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+6.2%88th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+45.5%61st percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Chicago-Naperville-Schaumburg, IL Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+75.7%22nd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.32024 ACS 5-Year3.3Bottom 27%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year78.8%56th percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±3742024 ACS 5-Year8,95093rd percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,780Bottom 28%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$2,590Bottom 33%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$2,010Bottom 32%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$3362024 ACS 5-Year$1,857Bottom 10%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$16,0482024 ACS 5-Year$398,70082nd percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$3042024 ACS 5-Year$7,11996th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$8,1342024 ACS 5-Year$119,763Top 16%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.10%2024 ACS 5-Year1.79%88th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year28.5%Bottom 49%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±242024 ACS 5-Year01st percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.0%1st percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year2.4%23rd percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±1612024 ACS 5-Year21579th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

56/ 100
Top 37% of 4,224 published city profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

Population has been broadly flat since 2020, at 22,015 in 2024.

Permitting has turned upward after moving the other way the year before: 66 units authorized in 2025, up 200% on the prior year.

Population is still rising but the pace is easing: 22,015 residents in 2024, up 0.7% over the year, a smaller gain than the year before.

98% of the 54 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.

Federal tax returns show DuPage County, which contains Darien, lost about 0.6% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $100,256, close to the $100,227 of households that moved out.

At 2.5 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
54
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
2.5
Bottom 49% nationally
Year over year
+54%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
98.1%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202422k22k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 2 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
−0.6%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
29%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$100,256
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$100,227
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Cook County, IL 19,059 people · 47% of arrivals
  2. Will County, IL 3,886 people · 9.5% of arrivals
  3. Kane County, IL 2,881 people · 7.0% of arrivals
  4. Kendall County, IL 875 people · 2.1% of arrivals
  5. Lake County, IL 616 people · 1.5% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Cook County, IL 12,399 people · 27% of departures
  2. Will County, IL 5,469 people · 12% of departures
  3. Kane County, IL 4,682 people · 10% of departures
  4. Kendall County, IL 1,776 people · 3.9% of departures
  5. Lake County, IL 848 people · 1.8% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for DuPage County, IL. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

202020212022202320242025660.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 85°F and January a low of 19°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 34.4 inches.

Air quality measures a median index of 45, in the Good band, and no day in the year passed 100.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station CHICAGO MIDWAY AP, 12.1 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.1"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index2024 calendar year632024 calendar year
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals34.4"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals19°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals85°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 1002024 calendar year02024 calendar year
Median air quality index2024 calendar year452024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals50°F1991-2020 Normals

Air quality

Median air quality index
45
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
63
90th percentile index
Days above 100
0
unhealthy for sensitive groups

A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. Air quality is measured by EPA monitors and published by county only where a monitor sits; a county without one shows nothing rather than an estimate, and a county reading is still the county’s. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

81 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, cold wave and tornado, with inland flooding alone responsible for 53% of it. Inland flooding and cold wave are independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large those hazards are.

Overall hazard risk is lower than 78% of measured US cities.

TornadoModerate
Heat waveModerate
EarthquakeModerate

Low or minimal exposure: cold wave, strong wind, inland flooding, lightning, winter weather, ice storm, hail, wildfire, landslide, hurricane, drought, coastal flooding, volcanic activity, tsunami, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
14
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
727
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Darien's police department reported 14 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 727.

DuPage County records 1.4 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, lower than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 4.1 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 6.5 per 100,000 residents in DuPage County.

Homicide
1.4
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
4.1
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
6.5
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
9.9
per 100,000 residents

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Darien’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Darien (DuPage County) rather than Darien itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

3 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Chicago O'Hare Intl at 16 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year96.1%Top 20%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle16 miTop 46%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle3Bottom 20%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year3.1%Top 25%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Chicago O'Hare IntlORD16 mi11,245 ft
Gary/Chicago IntlGYY31 mi8,859 ft
South Bend IntlSBN86 mi8,412 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
67
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Other cities in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
ChicagoCook County2,711,22652Chicago vs Darien
AuroraKane County179,89864Aurora vs Darien
NapervilleDuPage County150,69270Naperville vs Darien
JolietWill County150,44555
ElginKane County114,93457
WaukeganLake County89,07659
CiceroCook County82,79747
SchaumburgCook County76,86862
HammondLake County76,76856
EvanstonCook County76,34064
Arlington HeightsCook County76,00565
BolingbrookWill County74,09660

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Darien side by side with a similar place.

Darien vs Tinley ParkDarien vs Downers Grove

Moving to Darien from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated October 8, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in Darien

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Darien with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Darien closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
6056123,069$112,549$404,300—