What it's like to live in Urbana
Urbana is a small city in Illinois with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, commutes that run shorter than most cities, and a highly educated workforce. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Urbana deals with household incomes below the national average, crime rates above the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and hospital ratings below the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Short commutes
- Highly educated workforce
- Low student-teacher ratio
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Crime above national average
- Air quality concerns
- Below-average hospital ratings
- High poverty rate
- High rent burden for renters
How Urbana compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Urbana
Based on Urbana's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,944
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $38,880 a year
- 52% of Urbana renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$36,980
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $18,490
- Homes cost 4.1× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 31% below US
$972/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $972 a month. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $184,900. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $184,900 · 52% of renters cost-burdened
Job marketNear US average
4.3% unemployment
Unemployment here is 4.3%, close to the national average of 4.3%.
City-level (BLS)
Safety▲ 34% above US
442 violent crimes per 100k
Crime is worth weighing seriously here. Rates run above the national average, and while plenty of residents live comfortably, neighborhood selection matters a lot more than it does in a safer city.
Property crime 2515/100k · Urbana Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 45% below US
14 min average commute
Commutes run short here, averaging 14.2 minutes. That's an underrated perk of living in a smaller or well-planned city, where time isn't lost sitting in traffic. 6 in 10 workers drive to work; 7% take public transit; 19% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 84°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 21°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
2 hospitals
There are 2 Medicare-certified hospitals inside city limits. They average 2.5 out of 5 on Medicare's star rating.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▲ 58% above US
57% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a highly educated city, with over half the adult population holding a college degree. That tends to shape the job market and the broader culture, and it's a solid indicator of a strong professional scene.
Schools
13 public schools inside the boundary
There are 13 public schools inside the boundary and 3 private schools. The student-to-teacher ratio is 15:1, well below the national average of 16:1. Smaller class sizes are generally a positive sign for a district.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Springfield 1908 Race Riot National Monument (79 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Urbana's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and crime rates above the national average. A year of median rent ($972/mo) equals 26% of the median household income here, more than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, remote workers (19% of workers here already work from home), and people who want short commutes.
Other places near Urbana
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