Cost of Living in Chicago, IL (2026): What Renters Should Budget

Updated November 2026. Rent figures reflect October 2026 estimates from Apartment List's November report.

Chicago's citywide median rent is $1,858, with one-bedrooms at $1,723 and two-bedrooms at $1,875, according to Apartment List's November 2026 Rent Index. The citywide median is about 34% above the national median.

Chicago rents fell from their July peak and were still 3.37% higher in October than a year earlier. When two apartments are close on rent, check which lease includes heat and what it costs to get to work from each address. The solo one-bedroom example comes to about $2,269 a month for rent, electricity at 600 kWh, and groceries, before separately billed heat, water, and transportation.

Chicago Cost of Living at a Glance

Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates.

What Is the Median Rent in Chicago in 2026?

The median one-bedroom rent in Chicago is $1,723, according to the Apartment List November 2026 Rent Index. Two-bedrooms run $1,875 and the all-sizes median is $1,858. Apartment List reports the median, the market midpoint, rather than an average; its methodology describes it as the rent an apartment searcher could expect across the full rental market.

Rents are up over the year and down since summer. Chicago's median rose 3.37% over the 12 months through October 2026 while the national median was essentially flat, and it slipped 1.12% in October, the third monthly decline in a row. These are citywide figures and don't establish what any one building is asking.

Chicago Rent Has Risen Year Over Year for 64 Straight Months

Chicago's 12-month rent change has been positive every month since July 2021, 64 months in a row (Apartment List, November 2026 report). The median is still above a year ago but has declined since its July 2026 peak of $1,907, and Apartment List's time-on-market measure lengthened from 21.7 days in July to 39.7 in October 2026, against 35.7 nationally.

How Does Chicago Rent Compare With Other Midwest Cities?

Chicago is the most expensive city compared here, $404 above Minneapolis on the all-sizes median and $500 to $671 above Kansas City, Columbus, Indianapolis, and Milwaukee.

Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates. City-level medians, not total-cost comparisons.

On one-bedrooms the gaps are wider than the headline: Chicago's $1,723 is $410 above Minneapolis and $729 above Milwaukee, so a renter shopping that size faces a larger premium than the all-sizes column shows. A lower rent elsewhere becomes a saving only after you compare the same apartment size and price the commute in each place.

Chicago Rents Run 7.5% to 13.5% Above the Metro Median

Chicago's $1,858 median is $129, or 7.5%, above the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro's $1,729. The gap is widest on one-bedrooms, where Chicago's $1,723 is $205 (13.5%) above the metro's $1,518; on two-bedrooms it is $134, or 7.7%. The metro figure includes Chicago itself alongside Naperville, Aurora, Elgin, and Joliet, so read it as a regional benchmark rather than a measure of what any one suburb costs.

What Salary Do You Need to Rent in Chicago?

Using the $1,723 median one-bedroom rent from Apartment List's November 2026 report, a rent-only budget of 30% of gross income needs about $68,920 a year. A common planning rule treats 30% of gross income as a housing allowance for rent and utilities together, the share the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) considers affordable, so the table below is a starting point rather than a full housing budget.

The shared row assumes an equal split of the two-bedroom median between two renters. Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates.

Because the allowance covers rent and utilities together, subtract the utilities you'll pay separately from 30% of your gross monthly income to find the base rent you can carry, then test the full budget against take-home pay, debt, and savings goals.

On an $85,000 salary, the monthly allowance is $2,125. Subtract the modeled electricity ($105 at 600 kWh on ComEd), and the base-rent ceiling is $2,020, which clears the $1,723 one-bedroom median by $297 and the $1,875 two-bedroom median by $145. The $297 goes first to the housing costs this example leaves out, such as gas heat, water, or parking.

This calculation is a budgeting benchmark; each property sets its own income and screening requirements. Nationally, 51.8% of renter households spent more than 30% of income on housing costs including utilities in 2024 (Apartment List research). The Apartment List Rent Calculator sets a starting budget from your income, location, and bedroom needs, and our guides to the 30% rule and finding an apartment in your budget walk through when to flex the benchmark.

Illinois taxes wages at a flat 4.95% of net income (Illinois Department of Revenue) and Chicago adds no local wage tax; federal tax and payroll withholding take more, so test the budget against your take-home pay rather than your gross salary.

What Should You Budget Beyond Rent in Chicago?

The estimates below assume you pay electricity yourself and treat gas and water as conditional, so get two answers from the property first: what the apartment heats with, and which utilities the rent includes.

How Much Does Electricity Cost in Chicago?

Budget about $105 a month at 600 kWh for an apartment without electric heat, before riders and taxes, with the account in your name. The bill combines a supply charge you can shop among alternative suppliers and delivery charges ComEd collects whichever supplier you choose, so usage and the supply price you pick set it, and electric heat can push a January bill well above this figure. Compare any supplier offer against ComEd's own price, 10.103 cents per kilowatt-hour from October 1, 2026 through May 2027 (Plug In Illinois), and ask for a recent winter bill on a comparable apartment. The $105 is a tariff-derived example at a stated usage; its delivery components are in the appendix.

Do You Need to Budget for Natural Gas in Chicago?

Only if the apartment heats or cooks with gas; if it heats with gas, the winter bills are the seasonal cost to plan around. On Peoples Gas's standard heating rate in November 2026, 100 therms in a winter month comes to about $108 and 20 therms in a mild month to about $42, before riders and taxes; the gas charge resets monthly, and a rate case decided in late 2026 could change rates from January 2027 (Citizens Utility Board, October 2026). Ask who pays for heat and what the highest winter bill was on a comparable apartment.

How Much Are Water and Sewer Bills in Chicago?

The lease decides whether you ever see a water bill: a property may fold water and sewer into rent, charge a flat fee, divide one building bill among residents, or leave you with a direct account. On a metered account, the City of Chicago charges about $9.96 per 1,000 gallons for water and sewer together from June 1, 2026, about $30 a month at 3,000 gallons and $50 at 5,000, and the partial budget below leaves it out because the lease decides who pays. Ask which arrangement the building uses and how a shared bill is split.

How Much Is Public Transit in Chicago?

CTA charges $2.25 for a bus ride and $2.50 for a train ride with a Ventra card or a contactless bank card, with up to two free transfers within two hours, and a 30-day pass is $75, which pays for itself at 30 train rides or 34 bus rides a month. Fares hold at these levels under the CTA's 2026 budget; reduced fares are $1.10 on the bus, $1.25 on the train, and $35 for a 30-day pass. Living near an "L" stop can replace a car payment, insurance, fuel, and parking only when a route actually reaches your commute, so check the route before counting that saving and add the driving lines if you keep a car.

How Much Should You Budget for Groceries in Chicago?

The national USDA Moderate-Cost plan puts groceries for one adult at about $441 a month as of the September 2026 report. It's a national food-at-home planning benchmark, not a Chicago price, so adjust it for your household and how often you eat out.

How Do Solo and Shared Chicago Budgets Compare?

Splitting a two-bedroom lowers this example's per-renter partial budget by $838 a month, from $2,269 solo to $1,431 per renter.

Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates. The shared column splits one two-bedroom and one electric bill equally between two renters; a two-bedroom's electricity use may differ from a one-bedroom's, and groceries do not split. Both columns exclude natural gas, water and sewer, transit, driving, internet, insurance, parking, pet rent, and taxes; a gas-heated apartment adds its winter bills on top.

If electricity is included in rent, remove the electricity allowance from this example.

The rent share accounts for $785.50 of the difference and the halved electric bill for the rest; gas heat sits outside both columns. The $152 gap between the bedroom medians is the difference between two citywide midpoints, not a quoted price for adding a bedroom in one building.

Monthly Costs Outside This Example

What Should You Confirm Before Paying an Application Fee?

1. The recurring monthly total: the listing's rent plus every utility the lease bills to you, parking, pet rent, and any required recurring fee, using a comparable apartment's highest winter heating bill rather than a citywide figure.

2. The move-in total: first month's rent, the security deposit, and any application, administrative, or move-in fees, in writing. Track the security deposit separately from application and move-in fees, and confirm the refund terms and permitted deductions.

3. The property-specific charges still open: whether heat, water, and trash come inside the rent, whether a parking space is included or billed separately, and how any shared utility bill is divided.

Apartment List is free for renters to use. Confirm any application, administrative, or move-in fees directly with the property.

How Do You Find Lower Rent in Chicago?

Rent varies by neighborhood. The Chicago neighborhood guides cover price, fit, and published safety data:

• Cheapest neighborhoods in Chicago

• Best Chicago neighborhoods

• Safest Chicago neighborhoods

Rate My Rent grades a listing you're already considering against comparable local apartments.

Compare Chicago With Your Current City

If you're moving to Chicago from somewhere else, compare total cost rather than rent alone. The Apartment List Cost of Living Calculator compares two cities using after-tax household income, so estimate yours after Illinois's flat income tax.

Chicago's premium over the national median is $474 a month on the all-sizes median (Apartment List, November 2026 report). The transportation line is where that premium can shrink, if a CTA route lets you drop a car at the specific address, and sharing a two-bedroom lowers each renter's partial budget by $838 in this guide's example.

Does Chicago Fit After Heating and Transportation?

It fits when the full monthly cost of a specific listing, winter heat and the commute included, sits inside your budget. Chicago's premium over the other large Midwest cities compared here sits on the rent line; the heating fuel, which utilities the rent includes, and whether a CTA route lets you skip a car are what separate two Chicago apartments at the same rent. Check which utilities the rent covers, price the commute from each address, and compare the full monthly costs, then browse Chicago apartments.

Appendix: Methodology and Data Sources

Apartment List rent figures throughout this guide come from the Apartment List Rent Estimates, November 2026 release, with data as of October 2026.

• Rent. November 2026 release, October 2026 estimates. Chicago figures are citywide medians; metro figures cover the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro, and the two are labeled separately wherever both appear. Comparison cities are city-level medians. Levels come from the published median fields, growth from the published 12-month and monthly change fields, and the streak, peak, and time-on-market reading from the Apartment List series for city rows.

• Calculations. Annual income = monthly rent × 12 ÷ 0.30, rounded to the nearest $10; it is a calculation, not measured income. A base-rent ceiling is 30% of gross monthly income minus the utilities billed separately. Shared rent assumes two equal shares of the two-bedroom median, $937.50 each; the modeled electricity split is an illustrative half of the solo scenario, and groceries do not split.

• Budget assumptions. The illustrative partial budget is the one-bedroom median plus electricity and groceries; it excludes natural gas, water and sewer, transit, driving, internet, insurance, parking, pet rent, and taxes. Electricity is a tariff-derived example: 600 kWh at ComEd's 10.103 cents per kilowatt-hour supply price (October 2026 through May 2027) plus delivery for a separately metered apartment without electric heat (an $11.51 customer charge, about $4 in metering, and 4.79 cents per kilowatt-hour), before other riders and taxes. Natural gas is the Rate 1 heating customer charge of $25.81 plus 46.6 cents delivery and the November 2026 gas charge of 35.2 cents per therm. Water and sewer on a metered account are $37.18 per 1,000 cubic feet of water from June 1, 2026 with sewer billed at 100% of the water charge, about $9.96 per 1,000 gallons combined. Groceries use the September 2026 USDA Moderate-Cost plan for one adult, averaging the adult female and male figures and applying the 20% single-person adjustment.

Frequently Asked Questions About Chicago Rent and Cost of Living

What Is the Average Rent in Chicago?

According to the Apartment List November 2026 Rent Index, the median one-bedroom rent in Chicago is $1,723, the median two-bedroom is $1,875, and the all-sizes median is $1,858 as of October 2026. Apartment List reports the median, the middle of the market, which is less skewed by a handful of luxury apartments than an average.

Is Chicago Rent Going Up or Down?

Up over the year, down since July. According to the Apartment List November 2026 Rent Index, Chicago rent rose 3.37% over the 12 months through October 2026 while the national median was essentially flat, and the 12-month change has been positive every month since July 2021. The median slipped in August, September, and October, though, and sits 2.6% below its July 2026 peak of $1,907; these are citywide figures, so check listings for the size and neighborhood you want.

Is Chicago Expensive?

On rent, yes by Midwest standards: at an all-sizes median of $1,858 as of October 2026, Chicago runs about 34% above Apartment List's national median of $1,384 and $404 above Minneapolis, the next-priciest city compared here. Whether a specific apartment is expensive depends on what the rent includes, whether it heats with gas, and whether a CTA route lets you skip a car.

What Salary Do You Need to Rent in Chicago?

Using the $1,723 median one-bedroom rent from Apartment List's November 2026 report, a rent-only budget of 30% of gross income needs about $68,920 a year; the $1,875 two-bedroom median needs about $75,000, or about $37,500 per renter if two people split it equally. These are budgeting estimates; each property sets its own income and screening requirements.

How Much Are Utilities in a Chicago Apartment?

About $105 a month for electricity at 600 kWh on ComEd's October 2026 supply price and its delivery charges for a separately metered apartment without electric heat, before riders and taxes. If the apartment heats with gas, Peoples Gas charges $25.81 a month plus about 82 cents per therm, so a 100-therm winter month runs about $108 before riders and taxes. Water and sewer may be included in rent, billed as a flat fee, split among residents, or charged on a direct account, so confirm which utilities the rent includes before you compare two listings.

Is 30% of Income a Hard Limit for Rent?

No. It is a planning benchmark. Treat 30% of gross income as a housing allowance for rent and utilities together, subtract the utilities you'll pay separately to set a base-rent ceiling, and check the full budget against your take-home pay.

How Do Solo and Shared Chicago Budgets Compare?

Using the medians from the Apartment List November 2026 Rent Index, a two-bedroom costs $937.50 per renter if two people split the rent equally, against $1,723 for a one-bedroom on your own, $785.50 a month less per renter before utilities and fees. With electricity and groceries added, this guide's partial budget comes to about $2,269 a month solo and about $1,431 per renter shared, before gas heat, water, transportation, and fees.