2025 Compare Cities Overview:
Champaign, IL vs DeKalb, IL

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Highlights
Are people in DeKalb older or younger than people in Champaign?
- The Median Age in DeKalb is 1.8 years younger than in Champaign.

Are housing costs cheaper in DeKalb or Champaign?
- DeKalb housing costs are 8.2% more expensive than Champaign housing costs.

Which city has a longer commute, DeKalb or Champaign?
- The average commute for residents of DeKalb is 5.4 minutes longer than it is for residents of Champaign.

Things to do in Champaign?
Champaign, Illinois is a thriving university town located approximately two hours south of Chicago. It has plenty of recreational facilities ranging from libraries to state parks offering access to Lake of the Woods Forest Preserve or Homer Lake.

Things to do in DeKalb?
DeKalb, Illinois sits within DeKalb County providing visitors great culture attractions from Egyptian Theater to Northern Illinois University Convocation Center as well as plenty of restaurants like Kishwaukee Tap.

 Champaign, ILDeKalb, ILUnited States
 Population  Unlock41,083329,725,481
 Median Income$52,687  Unlock$69,021
 Median Age  Unlock25.138.4
 Avg. Home Price$190,400  Unlock$338,100
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock7.0%6.0%
 Avg. Commute Time15.68  Unlock26.38
Reviews for Champaign    13 Reviews

Over 6 years ago

Pros - close to Chicago, has Parkland community college and lots of places to eat. There is a train station downtown that is really good. Beautiful deciduous trees and  More

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Over 8 years ago

I wonderful city with great  More

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Actually it's barely a nice place to live. The pros: Not terribly expensive - at one point the least expensive place to live in the country among modest sized  More

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Reviews for Dekalb    2 Reviews

Over 17 years ago

While I love the cheaper rents then in the closer suburbs (to Chicago), the lack of high paying jobs for anyone without high degrees (Masters or higher) is  More

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As a 37 year resident of DeKalb - an escapee of the Chicago suburbs, I am pleased to write a bit about my hometown. Originally a college town in a farming community,  More

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