Illinois' jobless rate, now 4.7%, has been above the nation's almost every month since 2007
Each state is shaded by how distressed its households are, from green (least) to red (most), with data through September 2026. Illinois scores 74 out of 100.
Illinois households earn more than the typical American household, yet jobs push the state's score up. The state's jobless rate averaged 5.0% in 2024, the 4th highest of any state. Cook County, home to about two in five Illinoisans, held about half of the state's unemployed in August 2026. At the state's southern tip, Alexander County is more distressed than 89% of U.S. counties, the deepest strain in Illinois.
- Score
- 74/100
- Data through
- September 2026
- Edition
- October 2026
Next edition expected March 2027
How Illinois ranks among the states
Illinois is tied for 13th of the 50 states and D.C. on financial distress, even though its incomes are above the U.S. median and its poverty rate is below it (is Illinois poor?). Jobs are the difference. In August 2026, 4.7% of the Illinois labor force was out of a job, tied for 9th highest among the states, against 4.1% nationwide. On late payments and collections, Illinoisans sit near the middle of the states or better, though bankruptcy filings run higher than in most states. Jobs are also the part of the score that has climbed most since 2019, as the history cards further down show.
What drives the score
The score has four parts, each the average of one or more measures, and every measure is scored 0 to 100 by where Illinois falls among the states. The State Distress Index score isn’t the average of the parts. It’s the share of the other 49 states and D.C. whose own four-part average is lower, so a state that scores 80 is more distressed than 80% of the others. Illinois’ parts average 67, higher than the averages of 37 of the other 49 states and D.C. That’s 74%, so Illinois scores 74.
- Jobs82Unemployment averaged 4.9% from June through August 2026, against 4.1% for the U.S.
- Collections and bankruptcy60A smaller share of Illinoisans with a credit record had a debt in collections than Americans overall in early 2025, 10.6% against 13.2%. Bankruptcy filings ran higher: 207.8 per 100,000 residents in 2025 (2024 population), against 167.1.
- Renters’ housing costs72In 2024, 24.8% of Illinois renter households spent half or more of their income on housing, a little under the U.S. share of 26.1%.
- Late payments55In early 2025, Illinois card and car-loan borrowers were a bit less likely than borrowers nationwide to be 90 or more days behind; mortgage borrowers were behind about as often.
Illinois beside its neighbors
Illinois scores higher than every state that shares a land border with it. Kentucky comes closest; Indiana, Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin score lower, Wisconsin far lower.
State Distress Index score, 0 to 100. Michigan, which meets Illinois only out in Lake Michigan, scores 92, the 5th most distressed of the 50 states and D.C. overall. In August 2026, Kentucky’s unemployment rate was the same as Illinois’, 4.7%; Indiana’s was 3.3%, Missouri’s 3.5%, and Iowa’s and Wisconsin’s 3.2% (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
Since 2019, jobs have pushed Illinois’ score up and collections have pulled it down
At its worst
At the end of 2007, Illinois was the 5th most distressed state, with a score of 92. Renters’ housing costs, at 87, and jobs, at 83, were its highest parts. It stayed among the 15 most distressed states every quarter until mid-2019. Its least distressed quarter in our history, which starts in mid-2006, was the fourth quarter of 2019: 60, 21st among the states.
The 2019 dip and the climb since
Over 2019 the score slid from 84 to 60. Two parts moved. A new Census estimate cut the renters’ part from 81 to 58, and jobs dropped from 83 to 62: unemployment averaged 4.0% that year, Illinois’ lowest yearly rate in figures back to 1990 (U.S. 3.7%). Jobs have climbed since, to 82 today, and from mid-2022 to mid-2024 Illinois ranked among the 10 most distressed states every quarter. Collections and bankruptcy went the other way, from 68 to 60 (see behind on bills).
Since the chart ends
The chart stops in the first quarter of 2025, with Illinois at 62, 20th among the states, after another new Census renter estimate pulled the renters’ part down in late 2024. Today Illinois scores 74, tied for 13th most distressed. A newer Census estimate, for 2025, lifted the renters’ part from 44 to 72; jobs barely moved, from 83 to 82, and collections and bankruptcy held at 60.
Illinois ranked among the 15 most distressed states every quarter from mid-2006 to mid-2019, peaking at 5th in 2007, and was 20th by early 2025
Illinois’ State Distress Index score each quarter, on a scale of 0 to 100, from the third quarter of 2006 to the first quarter of 2025.
Illinois’ poorest and most distressed counties
Alexander County, at the southern tip of Illinois where the Ohio River meets the Mississippi, is both the state’s poorest county and its most distressed. In 2024, 24.8% of its residents lived in poverty, the highest rate of Illinois’ 102 counties (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). It scores 89 on our County Distress Index, which measures how strained household budgets are in every U.S. county. Pulaski, Saline, Franklin and Jackson counties, also in southern Illinois, follow it on distress. At the other end, Monroe County scores 0, the lowest possible score, which it shares with other counties around the country. No Illinois county is among the 100 most distressed in the country (see the national list).
The four Illinois counties scoring 80 or more, all in southern Illinois, hold 0.6% of its people
Each of Illinois’ 102 counties, shaded by its County Distress Index score from 0 to 100, with data through August 2026.
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The county map could not be loaded. Every county is in the lists on this page.
Most distressed
| Rank | County | Score | Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alexander | 89 | 24.8% |
| 2 | Pulaski | 84 | 21.7% |
| 3 | Saline | 84 | 18.0% |
| 4 | Franklin | 82 | 16.4% |
| 5 | Jackson | 79 | 20.5% |
| 6 | Winnebago | 74 | 14.8% |
| 7 | Vermilion | 73 | 17.3% |
| 8 | Cook | 72 | 13.7% |
| 9 | Macon | 71 | 16.7% |
| 10 | Peoria | 69 | 15.3% |
Least distressed
| Rank | County | Score | Poverty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 98 | Piatt | 5 | 6.9% |
| 99 | Effingham | 5 | 8.1% |
| 100 | Woodford | 5 | 5.5% |
| 101 | Washington | 4 | 7.3% |
| 102 | Monroe | 0 | 4.7% |
Rank in Illinois, 1 = most distressed. Ranks use unrounded scores, so Pulaski sits above Saline and Piatt above Woodford and Effingham, though each group shows the same score; the same holds for ties in the full list below. Poverty is the 2024 Census Bureau rate for each county.
Every county, by score
Four of Illinois’ 102 counties score 80 or more, all small and all in the south. Most Illinoisans live far from them. Cook County alone, home to Chicago, holds about two in five of the state’s people and scores 72, the 8th highest in the state.
16 score 50–69
Peoria, Kankakee, St. Clair, Jefferson, Marion, Knox, McDonough, Hardin, Mason, Stark, Union, Rock Island, Coles, Lawrence, Pope, DeKalb
37 score 30–49
Wabash, Gallatin, Williamson, Henderson, Pike, White, Stephenson, Boone, Massac, Perry, Champaign, Wayne, Fulton, LaSalle, Will, Macoupin, Randolph, Edgar, Madison, Sangamon, Logan, Cass, Schuyler, Kane, Christian, Montgomery, Whiteside, Fayette, Grundy, Clay, Adams, Scott, Hamilton, Morgan, Greene, Lake, Warren
40 score 0–29
Johnson, Brown, Lee, Richland, Crawford, Clark, Ford, Iroquois, Jersey, Marshall, Bond, Carroll, Tazewell, Kendall, Putnam, McHenry, Edwards, Ogle, McLean, Livingston, DuPage, Hancock, Bureau, Henry, De Witt, Moultrie, Calhoun, Douglas, Mercer, Menard, Cumberland, Jo Daviess, Shelby, Jasper, Clinton, Piatt, Effingham, Woodford, Washington, Monroe
Champaign is the fourth-poorest county but ranks 34th on distress
Our County Distress Index weighs five parts equally. They are late payments; collections and bankruptcy; jobs, which counts unemployment and adults 25 to 54 without work; renters’ housing costs; and a part built from poverty, child poverty, household income, disability and health insurance. So poverty is only part of the score. Alexander, Pulaski and Jackson sit near the top of both lists. Champaign County, home to Urbana and the University of Illinois’ flagship campus, has the 4th highest poverty rate in the state, 18.8%. Yet Champaign ranks 36th on distress: its renters’ costs are high, but it scores below most Illinois counties on late payments, collections and jobs. Cook County runs the other way. Its poverty rate is 38th highest of the 102, yet it ranks 8th on distress, with the highest renters’ housing-cost score of any Illinois county. A site that uses a different Census survey or year may name a different poorest county; this page uses the Census Bureau’s Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates for 2024.
Empty storefronts in downtown Cairo, the seat of Alexander County, in May 2011. The county’s typical household earned $48,493 in 2024, the lowest of Illinois’ 102 counties (Census Bureau).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Photo: MuZemike, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.
What happened to Cairo?
Alexander County, whose seat is Cairo, has lost most of its people. The Census counted 25,496 residents in 1940, its largest count, and 5,240 in 2020, about a fifth as many. Today it has the highest poverty rate in Illinois and the lowest household income, and in August 2026, 5.6% of its labor force was out of work, not adjusting for seasonal swings (Bureau of Labor Statistics). In February 2016 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development took over the Alexander County Housing Authority in Cairo, citing years of financial and operational mismanagement, poor housing conditions and alleged civil rights violations. Our data covers the county; we don’t hold separate figures for the city of Cairo, and the numbers can’t say why the decline happened.
U.S. Census Bureau, decennial census and Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Feb. 22, 2016.
Most distressed per person isn’t where most struggling Illinoisans live
Measured as a rate, the small southern counties stand out. Measured by how many people, Cook County does. In 2024 it held 697,586 of Illinois’ 1,434,871 people living in poverty, 48.6% of them (Census Bureau; our calculation). In August 2026 it held 158,879 of the state’s unemployed, 50.6%, more than the other 101 counties combined, at 154,859 (Bureau of Labor Statistics county counts, not adjusted for seasonal swings). The four counties scoring 80 or more held 0.8% of Illinoisans in poverty. Both views are true: the deepest strain per person is in the far south, while Cook County holds about half of the state’s people in poverty and of its unemployed (see poverty by county).
U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; American Default Research, County Distress Index.
Illinois’ unemployment rate has topped the nation’s every year since 2007
Illinois’ unemployment rate was 4.7% in August 2026, tied for 9th highest among the 50 states and D.C. and above the U.S. rate of 4.1% (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). It has eased since June but is above a year ago: after holding at 5.1% from March through June, it fell to 4.9% in July and to the August figure, against 4.3% in August 2025. Over whole years, the state’s rate has been above the nation’s every year from 2007 through 2025.
Filing a claim for unemployment benefits? That goes through the Illinois Department of Employment Security →
Unemployment rate
4.7%
U.S. 4.1%
Tied for 9th highest among the states and D.C., August 2026
Payroll jobs added over the year
15,000
August 2025 to August 2026, Illinois Department of Employment Security
Rise in unemployed people over the year
8.1%
August 2025 to August 2026, Illinois Department of Employment Security
Illinois’ unemployment rate was higher than the nation’s in 229 of the 235 months published since January 2007
Percent of Illinois and U.S. workers without a job and looking for one, adjusted for seasonal swings, monthly from January 1990 through August 2026. No October 2025 figure was released, because of the federal shutdown.
More payroll jobs, yet more people out of work
Illinois employers had 15,000 more jobs on their payrolls in August 2026 than a year before, a rise of 0.2%, against 0.4% for the nation, the Illinois Department of Employment Security reported. Construction added 13,400 jobs and private education and health services 9,600, while financial activities, which take in banks, insurers and real estate, lost 15,800. Over the same year the number of unemployed people rose 8.1% and the labor force, everyone working or looking for work, shrank 1.3%.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts the rise in Illinois’ rate from a year earlier as statistically significant. It doesn’t count the gap between Illinois’ August rate and the nation’s as significant, given the survey’s margin of error, though Illinois still ranks tied for 9th highest.
In yearly averages, Illinois’ rate was 5.0% in 2024, 4th highest among the states, and 4.6% in 2025, against 4.3% for the U.S. (Bureau of Labor Statistics).
Unemployment is highest in Edwards and Cook counties
| County | Rate |
|---|---|
| Edwards | 7.0% |
| Cook (Chicago) | 5.9% |
| Alexander (Cairo) | 5.6% |
| Pope | 5.3% |
| Pulaski | 5.2% |
| Will (Joliet) | 5.1% |
| DuPage | 4.7% |
| Monroe | 2.5% |
The five highest of Illinois’ 102 counties, Will and DuPage for the largest suburbs, and the lowest. Unemployment rate, August 2026, not adjusted for seasonal swings: Edwards had the highest of Illinois’ 102 counties and Monroe the lowest. Edwards averaged 8.2% over the 11 months published from September 2025 to August 2026. We don’t hold a rate for the city of Chicago; Cook County includes it. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The state minimum wage and its schedule are on the state’s minimum wage page →
Is Illinois losing population?
Slightly, over five years, but it has grown again since 2022. Illinois had 12,719,141 residents in July 2025, 76,207 fewer than in July 2020, down 0.6%, tied for 4th lowest among the 50 states and D.C. (U.S. Census Bureau). Its population rose in each of the last three years of Census estimates, by 16,108 in the year to July 2025.
Net loss to other states
431,149
3rd largest of the states and D.C., July 2020 to July 2025
Net arrivals from abroad
313,184
July 2020 to July 2025
Births minus deaths
38,983
July 2020 to July 2025
Why are people moving out of Illinois?
The Census Bureau counts how many people move, not why. Its figures show 431,149 more people moving from Illinois to other states than moving in from them over the five years to July 2025, the 3rd largest net loss after California and New York. That outflow has shrunk each year since the year to July 2022, when it was 149,904; in the year to July 2025 it was 40,017. People arriving from abroad, 313,184 over the five years, and births outnumbering deaths by 38,983 offset most of the loss (Census Bureau population estimates; the five-year sums are our calculation).
We haven’t found a survey of Illinois movers that measures their reasons, so this page doesn’t give one. Illinois’ jobs and unemployment →
Is Illinois a poor state?
No. In 2024 the typical Illinois household earned $83,327, 18th highest among the 50 states and D.C. and above the U.S. median of $81,604. The share of Illinoisans living below the poverty line was 11.5%, under the U.S. rate of 12.1% and 27th highest among the states (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). Income per person, all the income residents receive divided by the number of residents, was $74,522, 16th highest, against $73,204 nationwide (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis).
Median household income
$83,327
U.S. $81,604
18th highest among the states and D.C., 2024
Residents in poverty
11.5%
U.S. 12.1%
27th highest among the states and D.C., 2024
Children in poverty
14.1%
U.S. 15.5%
27th highest among the states and D.C., 2024
Illinois’ poverty rate has come in below the nation’s in every Census estimate since 1989
Percent of residents below the poverty line in Illinois and nationwide, 1989 to 2024. The Census Bureau published no state estimates for 1990 to 1992 or 1994.
Where Illinoisans in poverty live: the rate and the count
Cook County’s poverty rate is near the middle for Illinois, but almost half the state’s people in poverty live there. Alexander and Pulaski counties have the highest rates, yet they hold 1,122 and 1,024 of the state’s 1,434,871.
| County | Poverty rate | People in poverty | Share of Illinois’ total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook (Chicago) Share of Illinois’ total 48.6% | 13.7% People in poverty 697,586 | 697,586 | 48.6% |
| DuPage Share of Illinois’ total 4.0% | 6.3% People in poverty 58,043 | 58,043 | 4.0% |
| Lake Share of Illinois’ total 3.8% | 7.8% People in poverty 54,814 | 54,814 | 3.8% |
| Will Share of Illinois’ total 3.8% | 7.7% People in poverty 53,946 | 53,946 | 3.8% |
| Winnebago (Rockford) Share of Illinois’ total 2.9% | 14.8% People in poverty 41,345 | 41,345 | 2.9% |
| Kane Share of Illinois’ total 2.6% | 7.3% People in poverty 37,717 | 37,717 | 2.6% |
| Champaign Share of Illinois’ total 2.6% | 18.8% People in poverty 37,028 | 37,028 | 2.6% |
| Alexander (Cairo) Share of Illinois’ total 0.1% | 24.8% People in poverty 1,122 | 1,122 | 0.1% |
| Pulaski Share of Illinois’ total 0.1% | 21.7% People in poverty 1,024 | 1,024 | 0.1% |
The seven counties with the most people in poverty, then the two with the highest poverty rates, 2024. Poverty rate and people in poverty: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. Share of Illinois’ total: each county’s count divided by the Census Bureau’s state total, our calculation. The poorest and most distressed counties →
The richest counties ring Chicago
By median household income, the richest Illinois county in 2024 was Kendall, southwest of Chicago, at $120,075, followed by DuPage, $110,974, and Will, $109,888 (Census Bureau). Kendall also had the state’s lowest poverty rate, 4.2%.
SNAP in Illinois: the fewest people getting food help since 2009
In June 2026, 1,519,111 Illinoisans got SNAP food benefits, once called food stamps, the fewest in any month since June 2009 (U.S. Department of Agriculture; February 2019, a shutdown month with a broken count, is left out). That was 18.8% fewer than in June 2025, the 6th steepest drop of the 50 states and D.C. SNAP still reaches 12.0% of Illinoisans (2024 population), 14th highest among the states, against 10.7% nationwide.
Applying for SNAP or checking a case? That goes through the state’s Application for Benefits Eligibility (ABE) site →
People getting SNAP
1,519,111
June 2026, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Share of residents getting SNAP
12.0%
U.S. 10.7%
14th highest among the states and D.C., June 2026 (2024 population)
Drop from a year earlier
18.8%
6th steepest of the states and D.C., June 2025 to June 2026
The count was 1,843,515 in November 2025. It fell every month after that: to 1,653,845 by April 2026, then by 88,537 in May alone, the biggest one-month drop of the slide, to 1,565,308, and on to the June figure (U.S. Department of Agriculture).
What changed in May
About 100,000 Illinois SNAP recipients lost eligibility on May 1, 2026, under the federal time limit, the Illinois Department of Human Services says. Since Feb. 1, adults 18 to 64 who don’t meet an exemption lose SNAP after three months of benefits in three years without meeting the work requirement, and May 1 was the first day anyone could reach that limit. The state’s figure counts people who lost eligibility; the monthly count is a net total, which fell by 88,537 in May. The drop from December through April came before anyone could reach the limit, and we haven’t found a source that explains it.
A falling count isn’t falling need. Even after the drop, 12.0% of Illinoisans got SNAP in June 2026, more than the 11.5% who lived below the poverty line in 2024. Illinois ranks higher on SNAP’s reach, 14th highest, than on poverty, 27th highest (U.S. Department of Agriculture; Census Bureau). Illinois’ poorest counties →
Illinois’ cost of living: rent below the U.S. median, incomes above it
Rent is lower in Illinois than across the country as a whole, and incomes are higher. The median rent was $1,274 a month from 2020 to 2024, 24th highest among the 50 states and D.C. and below the U.S. median of $1,413 (U.S. Census Bureau). A year of that rent came to 18.3% of the typical Illinois household’s income, against 20.8% nationwide (our calculation). Prices for groceries, gas and utilities aren’t in our data, so this page can’t say whether living in Illinois costs more or less overall.
Median rent, a month
$1,274
U.S. $1,413
24th highest among the states and D.C., 2020 to 2024
Renters spending at least 30% of income on housing
44.5%
U.S. 47.6%
29th highest among the states and D.C., 2020 to 2024
Renters spending at least half their income on housing
24.8%
U.S. 26.1%
24th highest among the states and D.C., 2024
Illinois renters were more likely than U.S. renters to pay half their income for housing through 2012, and less likely every year published since 2018
Renter households spending half or more of their income on rent and utilities, Illinois and the U.S., one-year estimates for 2005 to 2024. The line skips 2020, a year with no one-year Census estimate.
What a basic budget takes in Illinois
The MIT Living Wage Calculator estimates that one adult without children needs $50,796 a year before taxes to cover the basics in Illinois, 20th highest among the 50 states and D.C. Two working parents with two children need $122,060. Those budgets leave out savings and anything beyond necessities.
Two tax changes reach shopping bills (see what changed): the state’s 1% grocery tax ended on Jan. 1, 2026. The transit sales tax in Cook and five nearby counties was set to go up on Aug. 1, 2026.
Rent costs more in Illinois than in any state it borders by land
Illinois’ median rent is higher than in each of the five states it borders by land, and so is the share of a typical income it takes, though incomes here are higher too.
| State | Rent, a month | Typical household income | Rent as share of income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois Rent as share of income 18.3% | $1,274 Typical household income $83,327 | $83,327 | 18.3% |
| Kentucky Rent as share of income 18.0% | $967 Typical household income $64,481 | $64,481 | 18.0% |
| Indiana Rent as share of income 17.7% | $1,062 Typical household income $71,958 | $71,958 | 17.7% |
| Missouri Rent as share of income 17.3% | $1,033 Typical household income $71,583 | $71,583 | 17.3% |
| Wisconsin Rent as share of income 16.8% | $1,087 Typical household income $77,557 | $77,557 | 16.8% |
| Iowa Rent as share of income 15.4% | $972 Typical household income $75,623 | $75,623 | 15.4% |
Rent: median gross rent a month, 2020 to 2024 (Census Bureau, American Community Survey). Income: median household income, 2024 (Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). Rent as share of income: 12 months of median rent over median household income, our calculation. Rent and housing costs in every state →
What changed in Illinois in the past year
-
Aug. 1, 2026
A higher transit sales tax was scheduled for Cook and five nearby counties
The transit sales tax collected for the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, formerly the Regional Transportation Authority, was set to go up by 0.25 percentage point on Aug. 1 in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties, the Illinois Department of Revenue said in June. It applies to groceries and medicine as well as general merchandise.
Illinois Department of Revenue, Informational Bulletin FY 2026-34, June 2026
-
June 16, 2026
The gas tax’s yearly inflation step is put off for six months
A state law, Public Act 104-0468, suspended the motor fuel tax increase tied to the Consumer Price Index that was scheduled for July 1, 2026. The pause runs through Dec. 31, 2026 (see what to watch).
-
May 1, 2026
SNAP’s federal time limit cuts off its first Illinois recipients
About 100,000 people lost SNAP eligibility on May 1 after using three months of benefits without meeting the work requirement, according to the Illinois Department of Human Services. A 2025 federal law widened who must meet that requirement; in Illinois the three-month clock started Feb. 1, 2026, and no county is exempt (see SNAP).
Illinois Department of Human Services, “SNAP Work Requirement in Illinois,” May 20, 2026
-
Feb. 17, 2026
The state’s medical debt program reports more than a billion dollars erased
Illinois’ Medical Debt Relief Program has wiped out more than $1.1 billion in medical bills for more than 500,000 residents, the governor’s office says. The state has committed about $10 million; its partner, the nonprofit Undue Medical Debt, buys medical debts in bundles, often for pennies on the dollar, mostly from health systems, and cancels them. Nobody applies. A debt qualifies when a participating hospital or other partner sells it to the program and the household’s income is at or below 400% of the federal poverty level, or its medical debt equals 5% or more of its income.
-
Jan. 1, 2026
The state’s grocery tax ends
Illinois dropped its 1% state sales tax on groceries. The same law lets a city or county charge its own grocery tax of the same size, so whether shoppers pay less depends on where they buy.
Illinois Department of Revenue, Informational Bulletin FY 2026-11, November 2025; local grocery taxes from July 1, 2026, Bulletin FY 2026-25, May 2026
-
Nov. 19, 2025
Regulators trim the gas rate increases for Nicor and Ameren
The Illinois Commerce Commission cut $146.5 million from Nicor Gas’ $314.3 million request to raise its delivery rates, nearly half, and $55.8 million from Ameren Illinois’ $128.8 million gas request. The commission didn’t say what the approved increases mean for a typical bill; it said the effect will vary by customer.
Illinois Commerce Commission on Nicor Gas, Nov. 19, 2025; on Ameren Illinois
How many people in Illinois are behind on their bills?
A smaller share than nationwide. Of Illinoisans with a credit record, 15.1% had a debt 90 or more days late in early 2025, tied for 27th highest among the 50 states and D.C. overall. Across the U.S. the share was 17.2%, our average of the states weighted by population (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia). These are debts households owe, not the state government’s debt.
Where Illinois falls among the 50 states and D.C., counting from the highest share: card borrowers 28th, car loans 24th, collections 31st, mortgages tied for 20th. The U.S. bars are our averages of the states, weighted by population.
The share of Illinoisans with a debt in collections fell from 17.7% at the end of 2019 to 10.6% in early 2025. Most of that drop came between early 2022 and mid-2023, from 15.5% to 11.2%. The three big credit bureaus began leaving many medical debts off reports then. Fewer people with a debt on their reports doesn’t mean those debts were paid. Nationwide, the share of people with a medical collection on their report fell from about 14% in March 2022 to about 5% in June 2023 (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau). The state has also been buying up and erasing medical debts (see what changed).
Counted in dollars, late mortgage balances run above the U.S.
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York measures something different: the share of the dollars people owe that is 90 or more days late. By that count, 1.2% of Illinois mortgage balances were seriously late at the end of 2025, tied for 7th highest among the 50 states and D.C., against 0.9% nationwide. Card and car-loan balances were close to the U.S. shares.
| Loan type | Illinois | U.S. | Illinois 2019 | U.S. 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgage | 1.2% End of 2025 U.S. 0.9% Illinois 2019 1.3% · U.S. 2019 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.3% | 1.0% |
| Credit card | 11.6% End of 2025 U.S. 12.4% Illinois 2019 6.6% · U.S. 2019 8.1% | 12.4% | 6.6% | 8.1% |
| Auto loan | 5.6% End of 2025 U.S. 5.2% Illinois 2019 4.5% · U.S. 2019 4.9% | 5.2% | 4.5% | 4.9% |
Share of balances 90 or more days past due at the end of 2025 and at the end of 2019. Source: Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Consumer Credit Panel / Equifax. Because it counts dollars rather than people, it isn’t comparable with the Philadelphia Fed chart above, and it keeps old debts that lenders have written off but still report.
Few Illinois homeowners are short on equity
In the second quarter of 2026, 2.4% of Illinois mortgages had less than 10% equity, the share of the home’s value owners would keep after paying off the loan. That was 10th lowest among the 50 states and D.C., against 4.7% nationwide (Federal Housing Finance Agency).
| Measure | Illinois | U.S. | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgages 30 to 89 days late, Sept. 2025 Tied for 21st highest | 1.7% U.S. 1.6% | 1.6% | Tied for 21st highest |
| Household debt per person with a credit report, end of 2025 30th highest | $54,050 U.S. $63,200 | $63,200 | 30th highest |
Rank among the 50 states and D.C., counting from the highest. Mortgages 30 to 89 days late, the first stage of falling behind: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Debt per person, all kinds of household debt: Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Late payments in every state →
Illinois bankruptcy filings are high per person but barely rising
Illinoisans filed 26,409 bankruptcy cases in 2025, or 207.8 for every 100,000 residents (2024 population), 14th highest among the 50 states and D.C., against 167.1 nationwide, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Filings rose just 1.6% from 2024, against 11.1% nationwide, though 2025 still had the most since 2020, when Illinoisans filed 31,037. They have gone up every year since 2022.
Illinois filers lean more toward Chapter 13 than most: 41.7% of the state’s 2025 cases, against 35.9% nationwide, 14th highest among the states. Under Chapter 13, people generally keep their property and pay part of their debts over time through a court-approved plan; under the more common Chapter 7, many debts are wiped out, and property the law doesn’t protect can be sold.
| Year | Filings |
|---|---|
| 2005 | 107,006 |
| 2010 | 82,669 |
| 2019 | 48,673 |
| 2020 | 31,037 |
| 2021 | 20,944 |
| 2022 | 20,703 |
| 2023 | 23,703 |
| 2024 | 25,998 |
| 2025 | 26,409 |
Cases under every chapter filed in Illinois’ three federal bankruptcy courts, the Northern, Central and Southern districts, each calendar year. 2005 had the most of any year in the available series, which run from 2001 to 2025 with 2004 missing. Source: Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-2. Bankruptcy filings in every state →
How foreclosure works in Illinois
In Illinois, every foreclosure of a home goes through a circuit court: the lender files a lawsuit, and only a judge’s order can lead to a sale (Illinois Mortgage Foreclosure Law, 735 ILCS 5/15-1101 and following). Once all the owners have been served with court papers, they have 90 days to catch up on what’s past due and keep the loan, which the law calls reinstating (735 ILCS 5/15-1602). The right to pay off the loan in full and stop the sale is called redemption. It usually lasts until 7 months after the owners were served or 3 months after the judgment, whichever is later. A court can shorten it in some cases (735 ILCS 5/15-1603). After the sale, the lender can ask the court for any amount still owed (735 ILCS 5/15-1508).
Under federal servicing rules, a lender generally can’t start a foreclosure on the home you live in until the loan is more than 120 days past due. In Cook County, homeowners who have been served can get free counseling and mediation through the court’s program, at 855-452-2637; Winnebago and Boone counties have a court program too.
- Goes through a court
- Always
- Time to catch up after being served
- 90 days
- Redemption period, usually at least
- 7 months
- Lender can seek the balance after a home sale
- Yes
- Time to move out after the sale is confirmed
- 30 days
What the law says for a home you live in. Sources: 735 ILCS 5/15-1101, 15-1508, 15-1602, 15-1603 and 15-1701; federal rule 12 CFR 1024.41; Cook County foreclosure mediation; 17th Judicial Circuit foreclosure program. How foreclosure works in Illinois →
Illinois received $386.9 million from the federal Homeowner Assistance Fund and had helped 17,068 households through early 2026 (U.S. Treasury). The state’s program is closed: its money ran out in February 2024, the Illinois Housing Development Authority says.
Mortgage complaints from Illinois homeowners to the CFPB
Since 2012 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has received 16,180 complaints about mortgages from Illinois. The most common issue is trouble during the payment process (4,098), ahead of loan modification, collection and foreclosure (3,750) and loan servicing, payments or escrow (2,576).
- Oct. 8, 2026 PNC Bank Trouble during payment process: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue while managing or servicing your loan In progress
- Oct. 3, 2026 Sombrero Capital LLC Trouble during payment process: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue while managing or servicing your loan Closed with explanation
- Oct. 3, 2026 PennyMac Struggling to pay mortgage: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue related to modification, forbearance, short sale, deed-in-lieu, bankruptcy, or foreclosure Closed with explanation
- Oct. 2, 2026 Ocwen / Onity Group Trouble during payment process: Escrow, taxes, or insurance In progress
- Oct. 2, 2026 Shellpoint / NewRez Struggling to pay mortgage: An existing modification, forbearance plan, short sale, or other loss mitigation relief In progress
- Oct. 1, 2026 PNC Bank Struggling to pay mortgage: Foreclosure In progress
- Oct. 1, 2026 Nexus Nova LLC Struggling to pay mortgage: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue related to modification, forbearance, short sale, deed-in-lieu, bankruptcy, or foreclosure In progress
- Oct. 1, 2026 Ocwen / Onity Group Trouble during payment process: Escrow, taxes, or insurance In progress
- Sept. 30, 2026 Wells Fargo Trouble during payment process: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue while managing or servicing your loan Closed with explanation
- Sept. 30, 2026 M&T Bank Trouble during payment process: Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue while managing or servicing your loan Closed with explanation
Illinois’ 10 newest complaints about paying a mortgage or getting help with one, newest first, from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s public complaint database as of Oct. 14, 2026. Complaints about taking out a new loan, and any naming a credit reporting company, aren’t included. Each is one person’s account, which the bureau doesn’t check; a complaint isn’t a finding that the company did anything wrong. Every Illinois mortgage complaint at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau →
What to watch before the next edition
Four dates between now and the next edition, nearest first: a jobs report, a gas-rate decision, the end of the gas-tax pause and a reset of SNAP’s time limit.
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Oct. 20, 2026
September jobless rates for every state
State unemployment rates for September are due from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. They will show whether Illinois’ rate kept falling after holding at 5.1% from March through June.
Bureau of Labor Statistics, State Employment and Unemployment, Sept. 18, 2026
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December 2026
A decision on Nicor Gas’ new rate request is due
Nicor Gas filed a rate request of about $221 million with the Illinois Commerce Commission on Jan. 9, and the commission has 11 months to decide. Nicor estimates a typical home would pay less than $6 a month more in delivery charges if the request were approved as filed.
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Dec. 31, 2026
The gas-tax pause ends
The suspension of the motor fuel tax’s inflation step runs through this date (see what changed).
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Jan. 1, 2027
SNAP’s three-month clock resets
A new three-year period for SNAP’s time limit begins, the Illinois Department of Human Services says, the same day a federal work requirement for adults covered by Medicaid expansion is set to take effect.
Illinois Department of Human Services, “SNAP Work Requirement in Illinois,” May 20, 2026
Where Illinois ranks highest and lowest
| Measure | Illinois | U.S. | Rank | Latest data |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mortgage balances 90+ days late Tied for 7th highest · End of 2025 | 1.2% U.S. 0.9% | 0.9% | Tied for 7th highest | End of 2025 |
| Unemployment rate, three-month average Tied for 8th highest · June–August 2026 | 4.9% U.S. 4.1% | 4.1% | Tied for 8th highest | June–August 2026 |
| Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 residents (2024 population) 14th highest · 2025 | 207.8 U.S. 167.1 | 167.1 | 14th highest | 2025 |
| Share of bankruptcy filings under Chapter 13 14th highest · 2025 | 41.7% U.S. 35.9% | 35.9% | 14th highest | 2025 |
| Residents getting SNAP food benefits (2024 population) 14th highest · June 2026 | 12.0% U.S. 10.7% | 10.7% | 14th highest | June 2026 |
| Income per person 16th highest · 2024 | $74,522 U.S. $73,204 | $73,204 | 16th highest | 2024 |
| Median household income 18th highest · 2024 | $83,327 U.S. $81,604 | $81,604 | 18th highest | 2024 |
| Mortgages 30 to 89 days late Tied for 21st highest · Sept. 2025 | 1.7% U.S. 1.6% | 1.6% | Tied for 21st highest | Sept. 2025 |
| Credit card balances 90+ days late Tied for 22nd highest · End of 2025 | 11.6% U.S. 12.4% | 12.4% | Tied for 22nd highest | End of 2025 |
| Median rent, a month 24th highest · 2024* | $1,274 U.S. $1,413 | $1,413 | 24th highest | 2024* |
| Residents in poverty 27th highest · 2024 | 11.5% U.S. 12.1% | 12.1% | 27th highest | 2024 |
| People with a debt 90+ days late Tied for 27th highest · Early 2025 | 15.1% U.S. 17.2% | 17.2% | Tied for 27th highest | Early 2025 |
| Household debt per person with a credit report 30th highest · End of 2025 | $54,050 U.S. $63,200 | $63,200 | 30th highest | End of 2025 |
| Mortgages with less than 10% equity 10th lowest · Apr.–June 2026 | 2.4% U.S. 4.7% | 4.7% | 10th lowest | Apr.–June 2026 |
| Population growth since 2020 Tied for 4th lowest · 2025 | −0.6% U.S. 3.1% | 3.1% | Tied for 4th lowest | 2025 |
Ranks place Illinois among the 50 states and D.C., counting down from the highest value or up from the lowest, as each row says. Equal printed values share a rank. * Census five-year survey, 2020 to 2024. Mortgage and card balances count dollars (Federal Reserve Bank of New York). People with a debt 90 or more days late count people with a credit record (Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia), with a U.S. figure we average from the states by population. Population growth: Census Bureau estimates, with the U.S. figure our sum of the 50 states and D.C. combined. Every row’s source is listed in Sources and method. Download this table: CSV.
Questions about Illinois
What happened to Cairo, Illinois?
It lost most of its people. Alexander County, whose seat is Cairo, had 25,496 residents in the 1940 Census and 5,240 in 2020 (U.S. Census Bureau). In 2024, 24.8% of the county’s residents lived in poverty, the highest rate in Illinois, and it is the state’s most distressed county on our County Distress Index. We hold county figures, not city ones, and they don’t say why the decline happened. What happened to Cairo →
Does Illinois have a strong economy?
Incomes are above the U.S. median and payrolls are slightly up from a year earlier, but unemployment is high. The typical household earned $83,327 in 2024, above the U.S. median (U.S. Census Bureau), and payrolls grew by 15,000 jobs in the year to August 2026 (Illinois Department of Employment Security). Unemployment was 4.7% in August 2026, tied for 9th highest among the 50 states and D.C. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).
Why are people moving out of Illinois?
The Census Bureau counts moves, not reasons. Its estimates show 431,149 more people leaving Illinois for other states than arriving from them between July 2020 and July 2025, a net loss that has shrunk each year since 2022. Arrivals from abroad and births outnumbering deaths offset most of it, and the population has grown in each of the last three years (U.S. Census Bureau).
What’s the poorest county in Illinois?
Alexander County, at the state’s southern tip. Its poverty rate, 24.8% in 2024, was the highest of Illinois’ 102 counties, and its typical household income, $48,493, the lowest (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates).
What is Illinois’ poverty level?
Programs in Illinois use the federal poverty guideline, which is the same in every state except Alaska and Hawaii. In 2026 the guideline is $15,960 a year for a person living alone and $33,000 for a household of four (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). The 11.5% poverty rate on this page uses the Census Bureau’s own poverty line, a separate measure.
What is the unemployment rate in Chicago?
We don’t hold a rate for the city itself. Cook County, which includes Chicago, had an unemployment rate of 5.9% in August 2026, not adjusting for seasonal swings, the second highest of Illinois’ 102 counties (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). Unemployment by county →
Cite or reuse Illinois’ data
Use these figures in reporting, research or a grant application; please credit American Default Research.
State Distress Index
Illinois
Tied for 13thmost distressed state
of the 50 states and D.C.
More distressed than 74% of the other states and D.C.
In American Default Research’s State Distress Index, a measure of strain on household finances, Illinois ranks tied for 13th most distressed among the 50 states and D.C.. Its median household income, $83,327 in 2024, was above the U.S. median (U.S. Census Bureau). Yet its unemployment rate, 4.7% in August 2026, was tied for 9th highest, and its yearly rate has been above the nation’s every year since 2007 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). In Alexander County, home to Cairo, 24.8% of residents lived in poverty in 2024, the highest rate in the state (U.S. Census Bureau).
Reporters can ask for an interview or a custom cut of the data at press@americandefault.org
Sources and method
We gather the data, run the numbers and research each state ourselves.
This edition: October 2026 · Next edition expected March 2027
- Unemployment, state, county and U.S., monthly and yearlyU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment StatisticsJan. 1990 to Aug. 2026
- Payroll jobs, unemployed people and labor force, August 2026Illinois Department of Employment Security, news releaseSept. 17, 2026
- Poverty, household income and people in poverty by countyCensus Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates1989 to 2024
- Renters spending half or more of their income on housingCensus Bureau, American Community Survey, one-year estimates2005 to 2024
- Rent and renters’ costsCensus Bureau, American Community Survey, five-year estimates2020 to 2024
- Population, moves between states and from abroad, births and deathsCensus Bureau, population estimates, Vintage 20252020 to 2025
- Alexander County population by censusCensus Bureau, decennial census; 1940 county counts1940 and 2020
- Income per personU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis2024
- Late payments and collectionsFederal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, Consumer Credit Explorerend of 2019 to early 2025
- Household debt and dollars behindFederal Reserve Bank of New York, Consumer Credit Panel / Equifaxend of 2019 and end of 2025
- Mortgages with little equityFederal Housing Finance Agency, National Mortgage Databasesecond quarter of 2026
- Mortgages 30 to 89 days late; mortgage complaints; medical debts on credit reportsConsumer Financial Protection Bureau: Mortgage Performance Trends; complaint database; Recent changes in medical collections on consumer credit recordsSept. 2025; Oct. 14, 2026; March 2022 to June 2023
- Bankruptcy filingsAdministrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-22001 to 2025
- SNAPU.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Administration; Illinois Department of Human Services on the time limit2009 to June 2026; May 20, 2026
- Cost of getting byMIT Living Wage CalculatorFebruary 2026 update
- Mortgage help fundU.S. Treasury, Homeowner Assistance Fund; Illinois Housing Development Authority, final reportthrough early 2026; March 2024
- Foreclosure lawIllinois Compiled Statutes, 735 ILCS 5/15-1602, 15-1603, 15-1508 and 15-1701; 12 CFR 1024.41; Cook County Circuit Court; 17th Judicial Circuitas of 2026
- Cairo housing authorityU.S. Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentFeb. 22, 2016
- Poverty guidelineU.S. Department of Health and Human Services2026
- Housing counselorsU.S. Department of Housing and Urban DevelopmentOctober 2026
- What changed and what to watchIllinois Department of Revenue, Illinois Department of Human Services, Office of the Governor, Illinois Commerce Commission, Nicor Gas, Bureau of Labor Statistics release. Every dated item carries its own source link (see what changed)Nov. 2025 to Jan. 2027
- PhotoMuZemike, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.02011
Four parts count equally: late payments, collections and bankruptcy, jobs, and renters’ housing costs. A state’s score is the share of the other 49 states and D.C. with a lower four-part average, so a state that scores 80 is more distressed than 80% of the rest. The full method →
We write with AI tools, and Ross Kilburn checks and reviews every page before it's published.
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Thanks, that helps.