Moving to
Chesterton.

All Chesterton data Compare Chesterton

14,446people live here $91,060median household income▲ 13% above US $1,274median rent per monthNear US average $300,900median home valueNear US average

What it's like to live in Chesterton

Chesterton is a small city in Indiana with rent below the national average, household incomes running above the national average, crime rates well below the national average, and a highly educated workforce. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.

The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Chesterton deals with air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, cold winters, snowy winters, and fewer dining and entertainment options than a bigger city.

The good

Rent below the national average
Higher-than-average incomes
Low crime rates
Highly educated workforce
Average class sizes

The not so good

Air quality concerns
Cold winters
Snowy winters — 40" per year
Smaller place — fewer dining and entertainment options

How Chesterton compares

Median household income

Chesterton$91,060

Indiana avg$71,957

US$80,734

Median rent (per month)

Chesterton$1,274

Indiana avg$1,062

US$1,413

Median home value

Chesterton$300,900

Indiana avg$218,200

US$332,700

What it takes to move to Chesterton

Based on Chesterton's median rent, home value and household income

To rent

$2,548

up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit

Income to keep rent under 30%: $50,960 a year
49% of Chesterton renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent

To buy

$60,180

a 20% down payment on the median home

With 10% down: $30,090
Homes cost 3.3× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)

Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.

The details

Cost of livingNear US average

$1,274/mo median rent

Cost of living works in this city's favor. Median rent sits around $1,274 a month, nothing that raises eyebrows. Solid value overall. Home prices are reasonable, with a median around $300,900. Not a steal, but not intimidating either.

Median home value $300,900 · 49% of renters cost-burdened

Job market

4.0% county unemployment

Unemployment in Porter County is 4.0%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.

Porter County (county-wide)

Safety▼ 73% below US

88 violent crimes per 100k

Safety is genuinely one of the selling points here. Both violent and property crime run well below the national average, the kind of numbers that fade into the background after a week of living somewhere.

Property crime 495/100k · Chesterton Police Department · 2025 data

Getting aroundNear US average

26 min average commute

Commutes run about average, at 25.6 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 20% work from home.

How workers get to work

Drive alone

71%

Work from home

20%

Carpool

4.5%

Public transit

1.9%

Other

1.2%

Walk

0.7%

Climate

Summers are comfortable, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 21°F and snow a regular occurrence.

Average month

High °FLow °FPrecip (in)

30-year averages, 1991–2020

Education & workforce▲ 18% above US

43% bachelor's degree or higher

The population is well-educated, with 43% holding college degrees. That points to a strong professional base and generally a healthy local economy.

Schools

5 public schools inside the boundary

There are 5 public schools inside the boundary and 1 private school. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1, close to the national average of 16:1.

Parks & recreation

The nearest national park or historic site is Indiana Dunes National Park (3 miles away). There are 2 national parks and sites within a day's drive.

Bottom line

Chesterton's strongest points are rent below the national average and household incomes running above the national average; the main tradeoffs are air quality that falls short of national benchmarks and cold winters. A year of median rent ($1,274/mo) equals 17% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit anyone prioritizing low crime, remote workers (20% of workers here already work from home), and college-educated professionals.

See all the data for Chesterton →·All Indiana cities →