Best Places61603, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 61603, 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.
61603 ranks 30,713th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on transit by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 61603
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.
61603's strengths and weaknesses
Where 61603 ranks high
- TransitBetter than 95% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 94% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Short commute17.6 minutes each way, better than 92% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 61603 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 57 pleasant days a year, better 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 61603
A household needs to earn about $25,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 61603 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $45,426, 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 61603's effective rate of 1.99%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 61603
61603 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 61603.
Who works in 61603, and how
Work in 61603 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in 61603
61603 has more parkland per resident than 98% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 61603 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 61603, month by month
61603 sees roughly 57 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 27° | 18° |
| April | 66° | 52° | 40° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 66° |
| October | 70° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 61603
The nearest airport, General Downing - Peoria International, is about 7 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Chicago Midway International, about 120 miles away.
The best schools in and around 61603
Schools across 61603 average a D+, better than 12% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Peoria Heights Grade SchoolD− · 11% proficient
- Hines Primary SchoolF · 4% proficient
- Dr. C.t. Vivian Primary SchoolF · 4% proficient
Top middle schools
- Reservoir Gifted SchoolA+ · 81% proficient
- Harold B Dawson Middle SchoolF · 3% proficient
- Von Steuben Middle SchoolF · 1% proficient
Top high schools
- Peoria Heights High SchoolD− · 16% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 61603 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
61603 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 61603 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 61603
Is 61603 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 61603 ranks 30,713th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on transit, walkability, and biking, and lowest on property taxes and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 61603 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $82,546. The overall cost of living runs about 21% below the national average. Set against a $45,426 median income, cost of living beats 10% of zip codes.
Is 61603 safe?
61603 is safer than 4% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $650 per resident a year.
Compare 61603 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 61603. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 61603 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.
61603 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 61603: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 61603: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 61603: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 61603: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
61603 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.