Best PlacesHyde Park, Chicago, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Hyde Park, Chicago, 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.
Hyde Park, Chicago ranks 1,490th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on biking by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Hyde Park, Chicago
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.
Hyde Park, Chicago's strengths and weaknesses
Where Hyde Park, Chicago ranks high
- BikingBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Health outlookBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
Where Hyde Park, Chicago ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 13% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than only 23% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Hyde Park, Chicago
A household needs to earn about $108,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Hyde Park, Chicago home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $78,653, 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 Hyde Park, Chicago's effective rate of 1.60%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, Chicago 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 Hyde Park, Chicago.
Who works in Hyde Park, Chicago, and how
Work in Hyde Park, Chicago centers on education and professional & technical. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 24%
- Work from home 27%
- Transit, walk, or bike 49%
Life in Hyde Park, Chicago
Hyde Park, Chicago has more restaurants and bars per resident than 67% of neighborhoods and more late-night spots per resident than 68% of neighborhoods. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Hyde Park, Chicago and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Hyde Park, Chicago, month by month
Hyde Park, Chicago 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 Hyde Park, Chicago
Chicago Midway International sits about 8 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 Hyde Park, Chicago
Schools across Hyde Park, Chicago average a C+, better than 49% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Stem Magnet Academy ElemB+ · 53% proficient
- Ray Elem SchoolD− · 15% proficient
- Murray Elem Language AcademyD− · 15% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Hyde Park, Chicago school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Hyde Park, Chicago 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 Hyde Park, Chicago against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Hyde Park, Chicago suits
Common questions about living in Hyde Park, Chicago
Is Hyde Park, Chicago a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Hyde Park, Chicago ranks 1,490th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on biking, walkability, 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 Hyde Park, Chicago expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $372,822. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $78,653 median income, cost of living beats 69% of neighborhoods.
Is Hyde Park, Chicago safe?
Hyde Park, Chicago is safer than 23% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $518 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Hyde Park, Chicago?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 34 with lows near 22. That works out to about 76 pleasant days a year, more than 34% of neighborhoods.
Is Hyde Park, Chicago good for families?
Schools beat 49% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 23%, and childcare runs $1,105 a month.
Compare Hyde Park, Chicago with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Hyde Park, Chicago. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Hyde Park, Chicago 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.
Hyde Park, Chicago detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Hyde Park, Chicago: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Hyde Park, Chicago: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Hyde Park, Chicago: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Hyde Park, Chicago: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Hyde Park, Chicago 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.