Best Places60544, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 60544, 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.
60544 ranks 6,057th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 60544
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.
60544's strengths and weaknesses
Where 60544 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Household income$121,703 median, better than 90% of zip codes
Where 60544 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,351 a month, better than only 12% of zip codes
- Short commute33.5 minutes each way, better than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 60544
A household needs to earn about $106,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 60544 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $121,703, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 60544's effective rate of 1.98%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 60544
60544'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 60544.
Who works in 60544, and how
Work in 60544 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 60544
60544 has more parkland per resident than 90% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 60544 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 60544, month by month
60544 sees roughly 76 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 26° | 20° |
| April | 60° | 49° | 40° |
| July | 84° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 65° | 54° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 60544
Chicago Midway International sits about 25 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 60544
Schools across 60544 average a C, better than 29% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Walkers Grove Elementary SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Lincoln ElementaryC+ · 36% proficient
- Grande Park Elem SchC+ · 36% proficient
Top middle schools
- Heritage Grove Middle SchoolB · 43% proficient
- Murphy Junior High SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
- Richard Ira Jones Middle SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
Top high schools
- Plainfield North High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
- Oswego East High SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
- Plainfield East High SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 60544 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
60544 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 60544 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 60544 suits
Families
Schools land around the 29th percentile and crime safety beats 78%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 91% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 17% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 60544
Is 60544 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 60544 ranks 6,057th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, cell coverage, and big-city access, and lowest on property taxes and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 60544 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $349,312. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $121,703 median income, cost of living beats 91% of zip codes.
Is 60544 safe?
Yes, 60544 is safer than 78% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $183 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 60544?
July highs average about 84 degrees, and January highs near 32 with lows near 20. That works out to about 76 pleasant days a year, more than 36% of zip codes.
Is 60544 good for families?
Schools beat 29% of zip codes, crime safety beats 78%, and childcare runs $1,351 a month.
Compare 60544 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 60544. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 60544 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.
60544 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 60544: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 60544: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 60544: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 60544: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
60544 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.