Population
Chicago
2,707,648
Austin
967,862
Median Income
Chicago
$75,134
Austin
$91,461
Home Value
Chicago
$315,200
Austin
$512,700
Rent
Chicago
$1,380
Austin
$1,655
Crime Rate
Chicago
5.40
Austin
4.67
Cost of Living
Chicago
131.3
Austin
160.5
Avg Temp
Chicago
51°F
Austin
69°F
Unemployment
Chicago
7.9%
Austin
4.5%
How Similar Are Chicago & Austin?
Austin is Chicago's #9 most similar city
2 of 10 key metrics match within 10%
Population
Chicago
2,707,648
Austin
967,862
Chicago (2,707,648) is about 2.8x larger than Austin (967,862).
Violent Crime
Chicago
5.40
Austin
4.67
Chicago has a 13% higher violent crime than Austin.
Property Crime
Chicago
34.72
Austin
32.42
Both cities have similar property crime — just a 7% difference.
Political Leaning
Chicago
28.4%
Austin
29.4%
Both cities lean Democratic with similar vote shares — 4% difference.
Unemployment
Chicago
7.9%
Austin
4.5%
Chicago has a 43% higher unemployment than Austin.
Median Income
Chicago
$75,134
Austin
$91,461
Austin has a 18% higher median income than Chicago.
Home Values
Chicago
$315,200
Austin
$512,700
Austin has a 39% higher home values than Chicago.
Education
Chicago
30.6%
Austin
41.6%
Austin has a 26% higher education than Chicago.
Demographics
Chicago
39.0%
Austin
59.9%
Austin has a 35% higher demographics than Chicago.
Cost of Living
Chicago
131.3
Austin
160.5
Austin has a 18% higher cost of living than Chicago.
2 out of 10 key metrics match within 10%. Chicago and Austin differ in most key areas.
At a Glance
0
Chicago
0
Austin
Austin leads in 5 of 8 categories
Cost of Living & Affordability — Chicago leads
Source: City Stats Index / HUDChicago scores 164.7 on the housing index (100 = national avg) vs 230.6 in Austin. Chicago has a living wage (family of 4) of $136,563 vs $166,949 in Austin (18% lower). Chicago has a living wage (1 adult) of $57,777 vs $70,632 in Austin (18% lower).
Overall Cost Index
Housing Index
Food Index
Transportation Index
Healthcare Index
Utilities Index
Living Wage (1 Adult)
Living Wage (Family of 4)
Fair Market Rent (1BR)
Fair Market Rent (2BR)
Housing Market
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSAustin has a vacancy rate of 5.6% compared to 9.6% in Chicago. Austin has a single-family homes of 49.4% compared to 29.2% in Chicago. Austin has a median home value of $512,700 vs $315,200 in Chicago (39% higher).
Median Home Value
Median Rent
Median Property Tax
Owner-Occupied
Vacancy Rate
Single-Family Homes
Jobs & Economy — Austin leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSChicago: 1,502,336 vs Austin: 606,238 for labor force. Austin has a unemployment rate of 4.5% compared to 7.9% in Chicago. Austin: 17 min vs Chicago: 27 min for mean commute.
Median Household Income
Per Capita Income
Poverty Rate
Unemployment Rate
Labor Force
Mean Commute
Work from Home
Private Sector
Government Sector
Crime & Safety — Austin leads
Source: FBI UCRAustin has a robbery rate (per 1k) of 0.85 compared to 3.35 in Chicago. Austin has a murder rate (per 1k) of 0.07 compared to 0.17 in Chicago. Austin has a violent crime clearance of 50.7% compared to 9.5% in Chicago.
Violent Crime Rate (per 1K)
Property Crime Rate (per 1K)
Murder Rate (per 1K)
Robbery Rate (per 1K)
Assault Rate (per 1K)
Burglary Rate (per 1K)
Larceny Rate (per 1K)
Violent Crime Clearance
Property Crime Clearance
Weather & Climate — Austin leads
Source: NOAA / Open-MeteoAustin averages 78°F, about 22°F cooler than Chicago. Austin averages 60°F, about 16°F cooler than Chicago. Austin averages 69°F, about 18°F cooler than Chicago.
Avg Annual Temperature
Avg Annual High
Avg Annual Low
Sunny Days per Year
Annual Rainfall
Annual Snowfall
Avg Humidity
Schools & Education — Austin leads
Source: NCES / U.S. Census BureauAustin has a bachelor's degree or higher of 41.6% compared to 30.6% in Chicago. Austin has a high school diploma or higher of 51.0% compared to 45.7% in Chicago.
Public Schools
Avg Student-Teacher Ratio
Colleges & Universities
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
High School Diploma or Higher
Demographics & Community
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSChicago has a population of 2,707,648, about 2.8x the size of Austin (967,862). Austin skews younger with a median age of 34.5 vs 35.7.
Population
Median Age
Avg Household Size
Married Population
Foreign Born
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Chicago
Austin
Healthcare
Source: CMS Hospital CompareChicago: 5 vs Austin: 3 for with emergency services. Austin: 3.7 vs Chicago: 3.0 for avg cms rating (out of 5).
Nearby Hospitals
Avg CMS Rating (out of 5)
With Emergency Services
Transportation & Commute — Austin leads
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACSChicago has a public transit of 19.3% compared to 2.1% in Austin. Chicago has a bicycle of 1.4% compared to 0.8% in Austin. Austin: 17 min vs Chicago: 27 min for mean commute time.
Mean Commute Time
Drive Alone
Public Transit
Bicycle
Work from Home
Airports
Cities Similar to Chicago, IL
Compare Chicago against its closest statistical matches across demographics, income, crime, health, and more.
City Comparison
8-axis fingerprint: population, income, housing, crime, education, age, climate, and cost of living. Click legend items to toggle.