2025 Compare Cities Economy:
Chicago, IL vs South Bend, IN

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Highlights
- Household income in South Bend, is 30% less than it is in Chicago and is 50% below the National Average.
- Chicago unemployment rate is 9.0%.
- South Bend unemployment rate is 6.9%.
 Chicago, ILSouth Bend, INUnited States
 Unemployment Rate  Unlock6.9%6.0%
 Recent Job Growth  Unlock1.8%1.6%
 Future Job Growth25.7%  Unlock33.5%
 Sales Taxes10.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Income Taxes  Unlock5.0%4.6%
 Income per Cap.$41,821  Unlock$37,638
 Household Income  Unlock$46,002$69,021
 Family Median Income$79,434  Unlock$85,028
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 Est. Households By Income
 Chicago, ILSouth Bend, INUnited States
 Income Less Than 15K  Unlock14.8%9.4%
 Income between 15K and 20K4.2%  Unlock3.8%
 Income between 20K and 30K  Unlock12.2%8.1%
 Income between 30K and 40K7.6%  Unlock8.0%
 Income between 40K and 50K  Unlock11.1%7.6%
 Income between 50K and 60K6.5%  Unlock7.2%
 Income between 60K and 75K  Unlock9.6%9.6%
 Income between 75K and 100K11.7%  Unlock12.8%
 Income between 100K and 150K  Unlock11.1%16.3%
 Income between 150K and 200K7.7%  Unlock7.8%
 Income greater than 200K  Unlock3.0%9.5%
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 Population By Occupation
 Chicago, ILSouth Bend, INUnited States
 Management, business, finance19.5%  Unlock16.4%
 Engineering, computers, science  Unlock4.3%6.5%
 Community, social services2.1%  Unlock1.8%
 Legal  Unlock0.9%1.2%
 Education, library6.3%  Unlock6.2%
 Arts, design, media, sports, entertainment  Unlock2.2%2.0%
 Healthcare practitioners and technology5.7%  Unlock6.2%
 Healthcare support  Unlock3.1%3.3%
 Firefighters, law enforcement3.0%  Unlock2.1%
 Food preparation, serving  Unlock6.5%5.4%
 Building maintenance3.4%  Unlock3.6%
 Personal care  Unlock2.8%2.6%
 Sales, office, administrative support19.3%  Unlock20.9%
 Farming, fishing, forestry  Unlock0.1%0.6%
 Construction, extraction, maintenance/repair4.9%  Unlock8.1%
 Production, transportation, material moving  Unlock20.2%13.1%
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 South Bend    25 Reviews

When it comes to standard of living, neighborhoods, safety, schools, wage earners and tax dollar contributing citizens Mishawaka hands down, will always made better  More

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Moving here is much harder than growing up here, I know from many people I've talked to. When you grow up here you learn how to interact with people, everyone will seem  More

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I’ve lived in the city for 4 years now and have honestly had a good experience so far. I live in a quite neighborhood and have had no issues with crime or violence.  More

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