Moving to Illinois from California
What to Expect
Considering a move from California to Illinois? Here's how the two compare on cost, climate, safety, and more.
If you moved from California to Illinois, you would find that Illinois is 24.4% cheaper than California. A $75,000 salary in California would need to be roughly $56,700 in Illinois to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Chicago averages 59°F vs 75°F in Los Angeles, making it significantly cooler. Los Angeles and Chicago are about 1,750 mi apart.
Thinking of moving to Illinois? Get a shortlist of towns in Illinois that match your priorities: size, cost, taxes, safety, disaster risk, hospitals and transport. Find my towns →Is Illinois cheaper than California?
How key spending categories compare
Restaurants
pay 19.2% less
Groceries
pay 18.4% less
Transportation
pay 12.7% less
Housing
pay 38.1% less
Childcare
pay 22.2% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 14.9% less
Data: MyLifeElsewhere's crowdsourced cost of living database, with prices submitted and updated by users worldwide. Exchange rates are refreshed regularly from public sources.
What salary do you need in Illinois?
What does your salary buy?
$75,000 → $56,700
To maintain the same standard of living in Illinois
Calculate with your salary →Cost of living by city
Cost of living varies a lot by city. Each figure is a city's overall cost of living as a percentage of New York City (the priciest, = 100%).
On average, cities in Illinois cost about 33% less than cities in California.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
The numbers behind daily life in Illinois compared to California.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Illinois performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How's the healthcare?
share of people without health insurance
share of adults with obesity
share of adults with diabetes
share of adults who smoke
California generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in diabetes rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Illinois performs significantly better than California across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
California generally does better on infrastructure, though Illinois leads in average commute.
What are the job prospects?
percentage of the labour force without work
a broad measure of economic output per person
typical annual income of a household
share of people below the poverty line
California generally does better on employment & economy, though Illinois leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
California generally does better on family life, though Illinois leads in bachelor's degree or higher.
Sources: US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (2023), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), OECD Regional Demography (2020). How we calculate this
Weather in Illinois vs California
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Los Angeles | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 69°/49°F (21°/10°C) | 38°/22°F (3°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 75°/57°F (24°/14°C) | 70°/48°F (21°/9°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 83°/64°F (29°/18°C) | 80°/60°F (27°/16°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 73°/53°F (23°/12°C) | 48°/32°F (9°/0°C) |
View all months
| Month | Los Angeles | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 68°/48°F (20.1°/8.8°C) | 31°/17°F (-0.6°/-8.6°C) |
| Feb | 69°/49°F (20.3°/9.6°C) | 35°/20°F (1.8°/-6.6°C) |
| Mar | 70°/51°F (21.2°/10.6°C) | 47°/29°F (8.1°/-1.6°C) |
| Apr | 73°/53°F (22.6°/11.9°C) | 59°/39°F (15.0°/3.8°C) |
| May | 74°/57°F (23.6°/13.9°C) | 70°/48°F (21.1°/9.1°C) |
| Jun | 78°/60°F (25.6°/15.7°C) | 80°/58°F (26.5°/14.5°C) |
| Jul | 83°/64°F (28.4°/17.6°C) | 84°/64°F (28.9°/17.7°C) |
| Aug | 84°/64°F (29.1°/17.8°C) | 82°/63°F (27.7°/17.2°C) |
| Sep | 83°/63°F (28.4°/17.3°C) | 75°/54°F (23.8°/12.4°C) |
| Oct | 78°/59°F (25.8°/14.8°C) | 62°/43°F (16.8°/6.0°C) |
| Nov | 73°/52°F (22.7°/11.1°C) | 48°/32°F (9.0°/0.2°C) |
| Dec | 68°/47°F (19.8°/8.6°C) | 35°/21°F (1.6°/-6.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Illinois than California?
On average Illinois is about 24% less expensive than California, with major cities narrowing the gap.
How much money do I need to move to Illinois?
Budget about $14,175 for 3 months in Illinois (based on a $75,000 comparable annual salary), then add the one-off costs: movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Illinois safe?
Illinois performs significantly better than California across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Illinois compared to California?
California generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in diabetes rate.
What's the weather like in Illinois compared to California?
The average high temperature in Chicago is 59°F, compared to 75°F in Los Angeles. Chicago receives around 36.9 in of rainfall per year, while Los Angeles gets 14.9 in.
