Moving to Illinois from Iowa
What to Expect
Everything you need to know before relocating from Iowa to Illinois — costs, safety, healthcare, and practical first steps.
If you moved from Iowa to Illinois, you would find that Illinois is 14.7% more expensive than Iowa. A $75,000 salary in Iowa would need to be roughly $86,000 in Illinois to maintain the same lifestyle. Des Moines and Chicago are about 310 mi apart.
Is Illinois cheaper than Iowa?
Where you'll feel the difference day-to-day
Restaurants
pay 1.5% less
Groceries
pay 8.2% more
Transportation
pay 26.5% more
Housing
pay 23.5% more
Childcare
pay 21.2% more
Entertainment and Sports
pay 1.3% 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 → $86,000
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 3% more than cities in Iowa.
Compare cities head-to-head
Key Indicator Comparison
Key indicators for anyone considering a move from Iowa to Illinois.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Iowa performs better than Illinois 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
Iowa generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in adult obesity rate.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Iowa performs better than Illinois across all what about housing? metrics.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Iowa generally does better on infrastructure, though Illinois leads in internet access.
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
Iowa generally does better on employment & economy, though Illinois leads in gdp per capita.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Iowa 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 Iowa
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Des Moines | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 39°/21°F (4°/-6°C) | 38°/22°F (3°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 72°/52°F (22°/11°C) | 70°/48°F (21°/9°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 82°/62°F (28°/17°C) | 80°/60°F (27°/16°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 48°/31°F (9°/-1°C) | 48°/32°F (9°/0°C) |
View all months
| Month | Des Moines | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31°/14°F (-0.6°/-9.8°C) | 31°/17°F (-0.6°/-8.6°C) |
| Feb | 36°/19°F (2.3°/-7.3°C) | 35°/20°F (1.8°/-6.6°C) |
| Mar | 49°/30°F (9.4°/-1.3°C) | 47°/29°F (8.1°/-1.6°C) |
| Apr | 62°/41°F (16.8°/5.1°C) | 59°/39°F (15.0°/3.8°C) |
| May | 72°/52°F (22.4°/11.2°C) | 70°/48°F (21.1°/9.1°C) |
| Jun | 82°/62°F (27.6°/16.7°C) | 80°/58°F (26.5°/14.5°C) |
| Jul | 86°/67°F (29.8°/19.3°C) | 84°/64°F (28.9°/17.7°C) |
| Aug | 84°/65°F (28.8°/18.2°C) | 82°/63°F (27.7°/17.2°C) |
| Sep | 76°/55°F (24.5°/12.9°C) | 75°/54°F (23.8°/12.4°C) |
| Oct | 63°/43°F (17.3°/6.1°C) | 62°/43°F (16.8°/6.0°C) |
| Nov | 48°/31°F (8.8°/-0.8°C) | 48°/32°F (9.0°/0.2°C) |
| Dec | 34°/18°F (1.1°/-7.8°C) | 35°/21°F (1.6°/-6.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Illinois than Iowa?
No — Illinois is on average about 15% more expensive than Iowa. City-level variation matters.
How much money do I need to move to Illinois?
Plan for at least 3 months of living expenses — roughly $21,500 in Illinois on a $75,000 comparable salary — plus one-off moving costs (movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit).
Is Illinois safe?
Iowa performs better than Illinois across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Illinois compared to Iowa?
Iowa generally does better on health & wellbeing, though Illinois leads in adult obesity rate.
What's the weather like in Illinois compared to Iowa?
The average high temperature in Chicago is 59°F, compared to 60°F in Des Moines. Chicago receives around 36.9 in of rainfall per year, while Des Moines gets 36.0 in.
