Best Places60208, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 60208, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
60208 ranks 14,168th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on population health by a wide margin, and civic engagement ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 60208
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
60208's strengths and weaknesses
Where 60208 ranks high
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 98% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 98% of zip codes
Where 60208 ranks low
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 60208
A household needs to earn about $139,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 60208 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $64,191, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 60208's effective rate of 1.50%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 60208
60208 runs younger than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 60208.
Who works in 60208, and how
Work in 60208 centers on education and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 21%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 68%
Life in 60208
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 60208.
What the weather is like in 60208, month by month
60208 sees roughly 85 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 27° | 21° |
| April | 60° | 49° | 40° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 67° |
| October | 65° | 55° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 60208
Chicago O'Hare International sits about 13 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 40.8 million passengers in 2025, with 305 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 60208
Schools across 60208 average a C+, better than 46% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Orrington Elem SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Nichols Middle SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- Haven Middle SchoolC · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Evanston Twp High SchoolB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 60208 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
60208 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 60208 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 60208
Is 60208 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 60208 ranks 14,168th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on population health, walkability, and few empty homes, and lowest on civic engagement and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 60208 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $485,233. The overall cost of living runs about 8% above the national average. Set against a $64,191 median income, cost of living beats 6% of zip codes.
Is 60208 safe?
60208 is safer than 4% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $612 per resident a year.
Compare 60208 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 60208. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 60208 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
60208 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 60208: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 60208: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 60208: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 60208: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
60208 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.