Best PlacesGross Point, Wilmette, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Gross Point, Wilmette, 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.
Gross Point, Wilmette ranks 279th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods 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 Gross Point, Wilmette
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.
Gross Point, Wilmette's strengths and weaknesses
Where Gross Point, Wilmette ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Household income$206,664 median, better than 98% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
Where Gross Point, Wilmette ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of neighborhoods
- Short commute35.7 minutes each way, better than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Gross Point, Wilmette
A household needs to earn about $254,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Gross Point, Wilmette home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $206,664, 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 Gross Point, Wilmette's effective rate of 1.80%, 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 Gross Point, Wilmette
Gross Point, Wilmette'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 Gross Point, Wilmette.
Who works in Gross Point, Wilmette, and how
Work in Gross Point, Wilmette centers on professional & technical and finance & insurance. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 38%
- Work from home 42%
- Transit, walk, or bike 19%
Life in Gross Point, Wilmette
Gross Point, Wilmette has more parkland per resident than 81% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Gross Point, Wilmette and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Gross Point, Wilmette, month by month
Gross Point, Wilmette sees roughly 86 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 Gross Point, Wilmette
Chicago O'Hare International sits about 12 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 Gross Point, Wilmette
Schools across Gross Point, Wilmette average an A, better than 94% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- The Joseph Sears SchoolA+ · 77% proficient
- Harper Elem SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Romona Elem SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Marie Murphy SchoolA · 64% proficient
- Wilmette Junior High SchoolA · 60% proficient
- Highcrest Middle SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top high schools
- New Trier Township H S WinnetkaA · 78% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Gross Point, Wilmette school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Gross Point, Wilmette 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 Gross Point, Wilmette against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Gross Point, Wilmette
Is Gross Point, Wilmette a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Gross Point, Wilmette ranks 279th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on what local pay buys, an educated workforce, and high incomes, and lowest on state finances and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Gross Point, Wilmette expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $853,449. The overall cost of living runs about 23% above the national average. Set against a $206,664 median income, cost of living beats 99% of neighborhoods.
Is Gross Point, Wilmette safe?
Gross Point, Wilmette is safer than 47% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $367 per resident a year.
Compare Gross Point, Wilmette with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Gross Point, Wilmette. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Gross Point, Wilmette 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.
Gross Point, Wilmette detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Gross Point, Wilmette: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Gross Point, Wilmette: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Gross Point, Wilmette: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Gross Point, Wilmette: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Gross Point, Wilmette 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.