IL Communities Ranked Among 2023 Best Places To Live In America

ILLINOIS— Only one Illinois community ranked among the top 100 Best Places To Live in America, according to the review site Niche, which recently released its 2023 rankings.

The list, now in its ninth year, is intended to help everyone from young professionals to retirees decide where they want to live. Niche used Census Bureau and FBI data to compile the list.

Bannockburn, a suburb in Lake County with a population of just 1,315, was the only place in Illinois to crack the top 100 Best Places To Live nationwide, getting an overall Niche grade of A+ and an A+ for public schools.

"Combining the best features of estate and urban living, the Village of Bannockburn is one of the most beautiful and safest communities," the village's website boasts.

Philadelphia suburbs occupied three of the top five spots nationwide: Chesterbrook ranked first, Ardmore ranked third and Penn Wynne ranked fifth. Others in the top tier are No. 2 Colonial Village, a neighborhood in Arlington, Virginia, and No. 4 Hyde Park-Spanishtown, a neighborhood in Tampa, Florida.

While Bannockburn captured Illinois' only spot in the top 100 places to live, here are the top 10 places to live within Illinois, according to Niche:

1. Bannockburn

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 1,315

2. Long Grove

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 8,258

3. Clarendon Hills

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 8,707

4. Naperville:

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 149,013

5. Inverness

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 7,684

6. Hinsdale

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 17,148

7. Buffalo Grove

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 43,062

8. Western Springs

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 13,550

9. Kildeer

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 4,093

10. Evanston

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 78,454