Moving to Illinois from Oklahoma
What to Expect
A comprehensive look at what changes when you move from Oklahoma to Illinois — from daily expenses to quality of life.
If you moved from Oklahoma to Illinois, you would find that Illinois is 9.6% more expensive than Oklahoma. A $75,000 salary in Oklahoma would need to be roughly $82,200 in Illinois to maintain the same lifestyle. Expect a noticeable climate shift — Chicago averages 59°F vs 71°F in Oklahoma City, making it significantly cooler. Oklahoma City and Chicago are about 690 mi apart.
Is Illinois cheaper than Oklahoma?
The biggest cost differences at a glance
Restaurants
pay 0.6% less
Groceries
pay 3.7% more
Transportation
pay 8.1% more
Housing
pay 21.7% more
Childcare
pay 7.9% less
Entertainment and Sports
pay 14.8% more
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 → $82,200
To maintain the same standard of living in Illinois
Calculate with your salary →Key Indicator Comparison
How Oklahoma and Illinois stack up on safety, healthcare, jobs, and infrastructure.
Is it safe?
incidents per 100,000 people per year
incidents per 100,000 people per year
Illinois performs significantly better than Oklahoma 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
Illinois performs significantly better than Oklahoma across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What about housing?
typical price of a home
typical monthly gross rent
share of homes that are owner-occupied
Oklahoma generally does better on what about housing?, though Illinois leads in homeownership rate.
Will I have good infrastructure?
share of households with internet
minutes each way to work
Oklahoma 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
Illinois generally does better on employment & economy, though Oklahoma leads in unemployment rate.
Is it good for families?
average years of life at birth
share of adults with a 4-year college degree
Illinois performs significantly better than Oklahoma across all family life metrics.
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 Oklahoma
Monthly averages — select a city to compare.
Avg. annual high / low
Avg. annual high / low
| Months | Oklahoma City | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan–Mar | 55°/33°F (13°/0°C) | 38°/22°F (3°/-6°C) |
| Apr–Jun | 80°/58°F (26°/14°C) | 70°/48°F (21°/9°C) |
| Jul–Sep | 90°/69°F (32°/20°C) | 80°/60°F (27°/16°C) |
| Oct–Dec | 60°/39°F (16°/4°C) | 48°/32°F (9°/0°C) |
View all months
| Month | Oklahoma City | Chicago |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 49°/28°F (9.3°/-2.5°C) | 31°/17°F (-0.6°/-8.6°C) |
| Feb | 53°/31°F (11.9°/-0.6°C) | 35°/20°F (1.8°/-6.6°C) |
| Mar | 62°/39°F (16.6°/4.0°C) | 47°/29°F (8.1°/-1.6°C) |
| Apr | 71°/48°F (21.5°/9.1°C) | 59°/39°F (15.0°/3.8°C) |
| May | 80°/58°F (26.4°/14.7°C) | 70°/48°F (21.1°/9.1°C) |
| Jun | 88°/67°F (30.9°/19.4°C) | 80°/58°F (26.5°/14.5°C) |
| Jul | 93°/72°F (34.0°/22.2°C) | 84°/64°F (28.9°/17.7°C) |
| Aug | 92°/71°F (33.6°/21.5°C) | 82°/63°F (27.7°/17.2°C) |
| Sep | 84°/63°F (28.7°/17.1°C) | 75°/54°F (23.8°/12.4°C) |
| Oct | 72°/50°F (22.4°/10.1°C) | 62°/43°F (16.8°/6.0°C) |
| Nov | 60°/39°F (15.6°/3.9°C) | 48°/32°F (9.0°/0.2°C) |
| Dec | 49°/29°F (9.7°/-1.6°C) | 35°/21°F (1.6°/-6.3°C) |
Data:
National Weather Service
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to live in Illinois than Oklahoma?
Day-to-day costs in Illinois run about 10% higher than Oklahoma on average; specific cities can swing further.
How much money do I need to move to Illinois?
A safe rule of thumb is 3 months of local expenses plus relocation costs. On a $75,000 comparable salary, that's around $20,550 in Illinois for everyday spending, before movers, a truck rental, and a rental deposit.
Is Illinois safe?
Illinois performs significantly better than Oklahoma across all safety metrics.
How is healthcare in Illinois compared to Oklahoma?
Illinois performs significantly better than Oklahoma across all health & wellbeing metrics.
What's the weather like in Illinois compared to Oklahoma?
The average high temperature in Chicago is 59°F, compared to 71°F in Oklahoma City. Chicago receives around 36.9 in of rainfall per year, while Oklahoma City gets 32.4 in.
