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Cost of living, pay and housing

41.53° N · 88.04° W · GEOID 1764005

Ridgewood

Will County, Illinois · part of the Chicago, IL metro

Limited data population under 5,000

IllinoisRidgewood, ILRidgewoodRidgewood

The short answer

Ridgewood is home to 2,795 people. Median household income is $92,500 a year and median rent is $1,634 a month, 21.2% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $161,300, about 1.7x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,634
20% above the median place
Median household income
$92,500
15% above the median place
Median home value
$161,300
49% below the median place
Unemployment
4.9%
1% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Ridgewood

  • Owning with a mortgage costs about $249 a month less than the median rent, which is rarer than in 98% of the 2,469 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-lowest of 335 Illinois places.
  • Household income has grown 14.4% a year across the last five survey releases, faster than in 98% of places its size. It is the 2nd-highest of 335 Illinois places.
  • The median home is worth 1.7 years of the median household's income, fewer than in 97% of places its size.
  • 76% of renter households spend 30% or more of income on rent, a higher share than in 96% of places its size.
  • Households average 3.30 people, larger than in 95% of places its size.
01

Moving to Ridgewood

Will County gains about 0.5 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in30,302
Moved out29,968
Net+334

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Cook County, IL12,8907,548+5,342
DuPage County, IL5,4693,886+1,583
Kendall County, IL1,0451,694−649
Grundy County, IL8411,236−395
Kane County, IL755814−59
Lake County, IN480834−354

Within Illinois, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within IllinoisOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$84K
Leavers$82K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Will County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
4.6% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 0.0% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Will County report $83,700 a year in income on average; those leaving, $82,300.
Income you would need
$65,400 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,634 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,385 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $161,300.
Getting to work
29 minutes each way on average; 14.7% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Calera, AL matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved from another state1
0.0%
below the median place (median 2.0%)
Income of households moving out7
$82,337
17% above the median place
Moved here in the past year1
4.6%
20% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure4.6%20% below
Moved from another state10.0%below (median 2.0%)
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure0.5above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$83,70619% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$82,33717% above
02

What it costs to live here

Vacant homes is 0.0%, below the median place (median 7.1%).

Ridgewood21.2%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$65,360
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
21.2%
4% above the median place
Home price to income
1.7x
54% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
21%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$72,000
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Ridgewood, $1,634 a month, and local prices for everything else (101.9 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Ridgewood, but easier on the budget

Close matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income.

PlaceRent to incomeMore left a year
Whitehouse, TX17.6% vs 21.2%$15,000Compare
Hudsonville, MI16.6% vs 21.2%$6,600Compare
Hebron, KY16.8% vs 21.2%$20,100Compare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Ridgewood.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Ridgewood? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Vacant homes1
0.0%
below the median place (median 7.1%)
Renters paying 30%+1
75.7%
50% above the median place
Median year built1
1955
1% below the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,63420% above
Rent to income121.2%4% above
Property tax rate12.0%123% above
Home price to income11.7x54% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure103.63% above
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$2,01125% above
HUD area median income4County figure$121,50013% above
Property tax paid (median)1$3,2710% above
Median home value1$161,30049% below
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure4.6%44% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure52.5%2% above
Homeownership169.5%5% above
Renters paying 30%+175.7%50% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,38526% below
Vacant homes10.0%below (median 7.1%)
Median year built119551% below
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Income per person1
$29,869
25% below the median place
Mean commute1
29 min
14% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$92,50015% above
Income per person1$29,86925% below
Unemployment1County figure4.9%1% above
Average annual pay6County figure$62,4185% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure3.1%16% below
Jobs6County figure267,86878% above
Poverty rate1County figure7.3%32% below
Mean commute129 min14% above
Works from home1County figure14.7%18% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

High school or higher is 66.3%, 28% below the median place.

High school or higher1
66.3%
28% below the median place
Household size1
3.3
32% above the median place
Homes with broadband1
97.6%
6% above the median place
All 8 people measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population12,7956646th largest
Median age133.315% below
Bachelor's or higher1County figure37.5%17% above
High school or higher166.3%28% below
Household size13.332% above
Born abroad125.7%191% above
No health insurance1County figure5.2%19% below
Homes with broadband197.6%6% above
05

Life in Ridgewood

38 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, one of them a National Historic Landmark.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents0.0 −100%
Playgrounds per 10k0.0 −100%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k0.0 −100%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars18.6 −11%
Shops23.8 −21%
Arts, recreation and fitness3.9 −5%
Doctors' offices and clinics23.8 +18%
Child care centers1.8 −22%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Public schools11
206
above the median place (median 9)
Public school students11
112,659
above the median place (median 4,897)
Shops per 10k8
23.8
21% below the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools11County figure206above (median 9)
Public school students11County figure112,659above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher11County figure14.37% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure18.611% below
Shops per 10k8County figure23.821% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure3.95% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure23.818% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure1.822% below
Parks per 10k90.0below (median 10.2)
Playgrounds per 10k90.0below (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k90.0below (median 11.2)
Libraries per 10k90.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails90.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings10County figure38192% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Tornado risk is 99.2, 22% above the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Ridgewood. Larger places are fetched first.

Tornado risk13
99.2
22% above the median place
January average low12
16°F
35% below the median place
Hurricane risk13
26.2
63% below the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureRidgewoodAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high12County figure84°F3% below
January average low12County figure16°F35% below
Average temperature12County figure51°F8% below
Annual precipitation12County figure39.2 in11% below
Natural hazard risk13County figure97.35% above
Hurricane risk13County figure26.263% below
Tornado risk13County figure99.222% above
Wildfire risk13County figure56.28% below
Heat wave risk13County figure95.56% above
Median air quality index14County figure442% above
Good air days14County figure61.6%10% below
08

Ridgewood in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 21% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 21% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,634/mo (2024)$2,140/mo$1,760 to $2,610/mo+4.6%
Median household income$92,500 (2024)$124,000$104,500 to $146,500+5.0%
Median home value$161,300 (2024)$239,000$174,000 to $330,000+6.8%

The median home would be worth 1.9 years of the median income in 2030, against 1.7 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Ridgewood

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Calera, AL$1,601$87,194Compare
Converse, TX$1,693$94,222Compare
Goddard, KS$1,758$94,004Compare
Stafford, TX$1,519$87,432Compare
Stafford, TXGoddard, KSConverse, TXCalera, ALRidgewood, ILRidgewoodCaleraConverseGoddardStaffordRidgewoodCaleraConverseGoddardStafford

Common questions

Is Ridgewood a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Owning with a mortgage costs about $249 a month less than the median rent, which is rarer than in 98% of the 2,469 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-lowest of 335 Illinois places. Household income has grown 14.4% a year across the last five survey releases, faster than in 98% of places its size. It is the 2nd-highest of 335 Illinois places. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Ridgewood expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 21.2% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $161,300.

What salary do you need to live in Ridgewood?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $65,360 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Ridgewood?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Calera, AL, Converse, TX, Goddard, KS and Stafford, TX.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  13. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  14. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Ridgewood with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Ridgewood itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/ridgewood-illinois

Citytistics. “Ridgewood, Illinois.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/ridgewood-illinois/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.