Cost of Living and Housing in Rockford, Illinois

Rockford has about 147,521 residents. Median gross rent is $985 per month and median household income is $54,752.

Comparison scope: “dataset median” below means the median among 1,211 cities across 10 states in this dataset. It is not presented as a nationwide Census median. The figures use 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates and may lag current listings.

Median Gross Rent $985/mo 40% below the dataset median

Median Home Value $129,000 66% below the dataset median

Median Household Income $54,752 35% below the dataset median

Owner-Occupied Homes 55% Share of occupied housing units

Rent-to-Income Baseline 22% Annual median rent ÷ household income

Home Value-to-Income 2.4x Median value ÷ household income

How Rockford compares

Rent is 40% below the dataset median, while household income is 35% below the dataset median. Within Illinois, Rockford ranks #17 from lowest to highest rent and #113 from highest to lowest household income among 123 cities in this dataset.

The rent-to-income figure compares two citywide medians. It is useful for broad comparison, but it is not an individual household budget or a measure of renter cost burden.

Similar-size cities in Illinois

Frequently asked questions

What is the median rent in Rockford?

Median gross rent is $985 per month in the 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates.

What is the median home value in Rockford?

The median value of owner-occupied homes is $129,000 in the 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates.

What is the median household income?

Median household income in Rockford is $54,752 per year.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Estimates. Local database refreshed 2026-07-11.