2025 Compare Cities Education:
Chicago, IL vs Philadelphia, PA

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Highlights
- Philadelphia spends 18.0% more per student than Chicago.
- The Student Teacher Ratio is 7.7% higher in Philadelphia than in Chicago. (lower means fewer students in each classroom).
- Philadelphia had 0.3% more residents who had graduated High School compared to Chicago
 Chicago, ILPhiladelphia, PAUnited States
 Expend. per Student  Unlock$25,843$15,905
 Educ. Expend. per Student$18,508  Unlock$13,142
 Instr. Expend. per Student  Unlock$7,842$7,999
 Pupil/Teacher Ratio13.97  Unlock16.23
 Students per Librarian  Unlock23804573
 Students per Counselor481  Unlock530
 Grade School Educ.  Unlock5.1%4.8%
 Some High School Educ.6.8%  Unlock6.3%
 High School Educ.  Unlock86.6%88.9%
 Some College Educ.17.0%  Unlock20.0%
 2 yr College Grad.  Unlock6.0%8.7%
 4 yr College Grad.41.7%  Unlock33.7%
 Masters Grad.  Unlock9.3%9.3%
 Professional Degree3.6%  Unlock2.2%
 Doctorate Degree  Unlock1.8%1.5%
Reviews for Chicago    270 Reviews

I've lived in Chicago city and later moved to suburbs when family size increased. Absolutely love this city. This is the cleanest and most beautiful among the major  More

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Chicago is probably the best value in a major city that you can find and my personal favorite city. It will become increasingly important as climate change makes the  More

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I've live on north side and south side, UIC medical center. Don't move here go to the north side. No good amenities, if you get bored with one there is no other choices.  More

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Reviews for Philadelphia    139 Reviews

Philadelphia is a very walkable and fun city to explore (albeit be aware of where not to explore at least at night). The city has beautiful old architecture , great  More

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I’m originally from New York City, then lived in a small city in upstate New York for eight years, then moved down to Philadelphia and have lived here for many years.  More

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Now the only reason some people disagree is because MONEY. If you live in “manayunk” (which I lived for 2 years) you can’t compare … you can’t compare your out skirt  More

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