Burlington, IA-IL

Micro Area Profile

44,680 residents. Jobs, income, development, climate and physical risk across the Burlington, IA-IL micropolitan area.

57out of 100
Area Score
Top 49% of 834 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 9 sources
Opportunity441st of 835 metro and micro areas measured49
SchoolsTop 34% of 695 metro and micro areas measured63
Growth620th of 834 metro and micro areas measured36
Housing affordability443rd of 835 metro and micro areas measured73
Climate594th of 835 metro and micro areas measured60
Physical resilienceTop 40% of 835 metro and micro areas measured63
Access517th of 835 metro and micro areas measured71
Economic stabilityTop 48% of 835 metro and micro areas measured53
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.2% and median household income $62,811, putting employment conditions in the middle range of metro and micro areas measured.

In the public schools here, 56% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 13.7 students for every teacher.

79 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 11% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

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
44,680
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$62,811
Bottom 37% nationally
Density
56/sq mi
794.9 sq mi of land
Median age
43.1
2024 ACS 5-Year
Area type
Micropolitan area
Iowa and Illinois
Nearest major airport
MLI
50 mi · Quad Cities Intl
Median home value
$131,000
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.2% — higher than in all but 49% of the 835 measured US metro and micro areas.

Employment fell 0.6% over the past year, to 21,672 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$2,9252024 ACS 5-Year$62,811Bottom 37%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,3122024 ACS 5-Year$35,284Bottom 48%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year12.5%Top 47%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year20.0 minTop 13%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year23.4%Bottom 43%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year83.5%94th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 202621,672Bottom 29%of 835July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+1.5%Top 29%of 835July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026−0.6%Top 49%of 835July 2026
Labor forceJuly 202622,61828th percentileof 835July 2026
Labor force participation ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year78.4%Top 35%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Public transit to work ±0.5%2024 ACS 5-Year0.9%79th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026+0.3%Bottom 21%of 835July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20264.2%Bottom 49%of 835July 2026
Worked from home ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year4.2%7th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/075.82.9
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.2% in July 2026. It has been rising for the last 3 months, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

56% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 60% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 13.7 students for every full-time teacher across 19 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
19
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
13.7
across all schools here
Math proficiency
55.6%
Top 40% in Iowa
Reading proficiency
60.1%
Top 38% in Iowa
The 12 largest of 19 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Burlington Community High SchoolBurlington Comm School District1,01614.347%60%
West Burlington Elem SchoolWest Burlington Ind School District47917.183%76%
Edward Stone Middle SchoolBurlington Comm School District45215.648%55%
Mediapolis Elementary SchoolMediapolis Comm School District43214.975%73%
Aldo Leopold Intermediate SchoolBurlington Comm School District41210.840%45%
West Burlington Arnold Jr./Sr. High SchoolWest Burlington Ind School District39613.767%77%
Danville Elementary SchoolDanville Comm School District36213.985%65%
West Central Elementary SchoolWest Central CUSD 23532111.512%17%
Mediapolis High SchoolMediapolis Comm School District31212.585%85%
Black Hawk Elementary SchoolBurlington Comm School District30511.746%53%
Sunnyside Elementary SchoolBurlington Comm School District29811.047%57%
Danville Junior-Senior High SchoolDanville Comm School District28917.072%72%

46.5% 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 each state’s own standard, so it is ranked within state — here, within Iowa, the first state in this area’s name. How to read school figures.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $1,977 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.51% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $1,063, some 20% above the $888 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $1,063 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $42,500 a year, about 68% of the median household income here of $62,811.

The typical renter household here spends 30% of its income on rent, at the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $888 a month.

A median home at $131,000 costs 1.7 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $75,635, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
29.8%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
1.7×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$1,063
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$888
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$131,000
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Burlington’s median household income of $62,811, 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
Home price to income ±0.12024 ACS 5-Year1.7Top 4%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year75.5%83rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±412024 ACS 5-Year22,16833rd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$810Top 32%of 818FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$1,369Top 41%of 818FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$1,063Top 41%of 818FY2026
Median gross rent ±$732024 ACS 5-Year$888Top 31%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$6,8942024 ACS 5-Year$131,0009th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$782024 ACS 5-Year$1,97750th percentileof 9332024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$3,6922024 ACS 5-Year$75,635Bottom 34%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.10%2024 ACS 5-Year1.51%88th percentileof 9322024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year29.8%Bottom 38%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1472024 ACS 5-Year32624th percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year1.5%41st percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year8.8%62nd percentileof 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±3342024 ACS 5-Year2,28623rd percentileof 9352024 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.

Development Momentum

36/ 100
Ranks 620 of 834 published metro profiles
The most recent move in permitting was upward, in a series running from 2024 to 2025.

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 fallen 2% since 2020, to 44,459 in 2024.

78% of the 79 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.

At 1.8 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US metro and micro areas.

Units permitted
79
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.8
Bottom 35% nationally
Year over year
−11%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
78.5%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

2020202120222023202445k44k
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 holding roughly steady, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

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 16°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 37.9 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station BURLINGTON MUNI AP, 6.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.9"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals37.9"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals16°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals85°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals51°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

63 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, tornado and hail, with inland flooding alone responsible for 43% of it.

HailHigh
DroughtElevated
Strong windModerate
Heat waveModerate
TornadoElevated
Inland floodingModerate
Cold waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: landslide, ice storm, lightning, winter weather, earthquake, wildfire, hurricane, coastal flooding, tsunami, avalanche, volcanic activity.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. This value is the population-weighted mean of all component counties; expected annual loss is their sum. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

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.

Reported crime
Offenses reported to police are published by department rather than by town, so AreaProfile shows a rate only on city profiles, and only where that city’s department submitted every month of a year. City profiles inside this area carry their own figure where their department reported a full year. A partial year is never scaled up to look complete, and arrest counts or news volume are never substituted for it.
Cost of living
Price parities are published for metropolitan areas, and this place lies outside one.
Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it do.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index by county, and only where a monitor sits, so a metropolitan area carries none of its own. The county profiles inside it show it where one exists.
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. Cost of living is published where the Bureau of Economic Analysis measures it, though not for this place. 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 Quad Cities Intl at 50 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year86.8%Bottom 33%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle50 miBottom 38%of 835NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle3Bottom 35%of 835NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year9.8%Bottom 36%of 9352024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Quad Cities IntlMLI50 mi10,002 ft
General Downing - Peoria IntlPIA73 mi10,104 ft
The Eastern IowaCID78 mi8,600 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
57
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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
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
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
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.

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