Best Places60521, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 60521, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
60521 ranks 908th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 60521
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.
60521's strengths and weaknesses
Where 60521 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$226,775 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 97% of zip codes
Where 60521 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,499 a month, better than only 6% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 60521
A household needs to earn about $319,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 60521 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $226,775, 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 60521's effective rate of 1.65%, 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 60521
60521's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 60521.
Who works in 60521, and how
Work in 60521 centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 55%
- Work from home 32%
- Transit, walk, or bike 13%
Life in 60521
60521 has more parkland per resident than 88% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 60521 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 60521, month by month
60521 sees roughly 76 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 28° | 22° |
| April | 61° | 50° | 43° |
| July | 86° | 77° | 70° |
| October | 66° | 57° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 60521
Chicago Midway International sits about 9 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 9.4 million passengers in 2025, with 113 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 60521
Schools across 60521 average an A, better than 93% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Brook Forest Elem SchoolA+ · 80% proficient
- Oak Elem SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- The Lane Elem SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hinsdale Middle SchoolA · 66% proficient
- Clarendon Hills Middle SchoolA · 65% proficient
- Butler Junior High SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top high schools
- Hinsdale Central High SchoolA · 72% proficient
- Hinsdale South High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 60521 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
60521 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 60521 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 60521
Is 60521 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 60521 ranks 908th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, high incomes, and an educated workforce, and lowest on state finances and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 60521 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,092,281. The overall cost of living runs about 20% above the national average. Set against a $226,775 median income, cost of living beats 100% of zip codes.
Is 60521 safe?
60521 is safer than 35% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $292 per resident a year.
Compare 60521 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 60521. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 60521 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.
60521 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 60521: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 60521: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 60521: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 60521: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
60521 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.