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Whiteside County, IL

Migration of people and income, 20222023 filing years

At a glance (2023)

Cost of living
99
1% below the U.S. average
Median home value
$125,800
national $303,400
Home prices, 5 years
+28.1%
over the 5 years to 2023
Monthly rent
$808
national $1,348
Homeownership
75%
national 65%
Unemployment
4.7%
national 3.6%
Household income
$64,536
national $78,538
Median age
43.4 yrs
national 38.7

Cost of living is the statewide price level for Illinois (state avg).

The cost of living runs about 1% below the national average. The median home is valued at $125,800 (nominal). Home prices have risen about 28% over the five years to 2023. Median rent is about $808 a month. Unemployment averaged 4.7% in 2023 (national 3.6%). Median household income is $64,536. These figures describe all residents, not just tax filers, come from separate sources than the migration data on this page, and do not indicate why anyone moved.

Between the 2022 and 2023 filing years, Whiteside County, IL saw a net loss of 16 tax-filing households and a net gain of 125 individuals. Against a population of about 54,498, that is a net inflow of about 2.3 per 1,000 residents. On net, the area lost $3.3M in associated adjusted gross income (AGI, nominal dollars). The largest inflow, about 174 households, came from Lee County; the largest outflow, about 160 households, went to Lee County. In the prior (2022) filing year, the area saw a net loss of 152 individuals. These figures cover federal income tax filers only and do not indicate why people moved.

Net income (AGI)
-$3.3M
nominal dollars
Net households
-16
tax returns
Net people
+125
exemptions

+2.3 net people per 1,000 residents (population 54,498)

Income (AGI) in and out

Moved in$52.3M
Moved out$55.6M
Net -$3.3M (nominal)
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Whiteside County within Illinois

Whiteside County is outlined, with arrows tracing its largest moves to and from other Illinois counties. Hover any county for its figures; click to open it.

Net outNet in(AGI $)
Hover an area to trace its top 5 inbound (in) and outbound (out) moves.
Net income (AGI) that moved in minus out, in nominal dollars (not adjusted for inflation).Net tax returns (filing households) that moved in minus out.Net people per 1,000 residents, so larger and smaller areas compare fairly.
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Where movers came from

  1. 1Lee County, IL174$8.1M
  2. 2Clinton County, IA93$4.1M
  3. 3Ogle County, IL57$2.6M
  4. 4Carroll County, IL56$2.6M
  5. 5Rock Island County, IL45$2.4M
  6. 6Scott County, IA44$1.9M
  7. 7Cook County, IL42$1.9M
  8. 8Henry County, IL33$1.7M
  9. 9Winnebago County, IL28$1.1M
  10. 10Bureau County, IL24$685K
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Where movers went

  1. 1Lee County, IL160$6.6M
  2. 2Clinton County, IA91$4M
  3. 3Rock Island County, IL55$2.6M
  4. 4Carroll County, IL51$2.1M
  5. 5Scott County, IA43$2.5M
  6. 6Ogle County, IL42$2.1M
  7. 7Cook County, IL34$1.4M
  8. 8Bureau County, IL32$1.2M
  9. 9Henry County, IL26$1.2M
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Churn by county · both directions at once

The biggest two-way exchanges of filing households, 20222023. Moved in and moved out are gross one-way counts; net is the difference. Click a column to sort.

Lee County, IL174160+14+$1.5M
Clinton County, IA9391+2+$170K
Carroll County, IL5651+5+$531K
Rock Island County, IL4555-10-$193K
Ogle County, IL5742+15+$530K
Scott County, IA4443+1-$583K
Cook County, IL4234+8+$443K
Henry County, IL3326+7+$479K
Bureau County, IL2432-8-$535K
Winnebago County, IL28

Counts are filing households (IRS returns), matching the lists above; income is nominal AGI. A dash means the IRS published only one direction of that exchange (small flows are suppressed), so no net is computed.

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Net migration by year

Net 2012–2023: -$140M (-2,176 people)
20122023
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Net AGI and net people by year (nominal dollars)
YearNet AGINet people
2012-$6M-68
2013-$16.1M-243
2014-$10M-295
2015-$16.8M+48
2016-$13M-287
2017-$16.8M-561
2018-$4.7M-56
2019-$15.4M-296
2020-$13.8M-280
2021-$8.3M-111
2022-$15.8M-152
2023-$3.3M+125
Migration in context

How big is this move, relative to the county?

In the 20222023 filing year, about 125 more people moved into Whiteside County, IL than left (counting tax filers and their dependents) — a net loss of about $3.3M in income (nominal) — in a county of 54,480 people.

Population
54,480
Census 2023 estimate
Net migration rate
+2.3
net people per 1,000 residents
A town of 10,000 would net about +23 people.
Net income per resident
−$60
nominal dollars
-$3.3M total across 54,480 residents.

The rate lets you compare Whiteside County, IL with a countyof any size: it’s the net flow divided by population. The IRS counts tax filers; population counts all residents, so read the rate as a scale indicator, not a literal share of people.

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Components of population change · 2023 (Census)

Where the county’s overall change came from. Census counts all residents; the IRS migration above is one slice of the domestic-migration component.

Births
+532
Deaths
-754
Net domestic migration
+102
Net international migration
+65
Total change
-72

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Figures are people, not tax filers.

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Income & cost of living

What a dollar is worth here

Prices around Whiteside County, IL run about 1% below the national average. In plain terms: $100 spent here buys about what $101 buys in the average American community. The figures below apply that to income, each compared to the U.S. average of $70,002 per person.

Income per person
$55,473
what people here earn (BEA 2023, nominal)
21% below the U.S. average
Price level
98.8
100 = U.S. average prices (BEA price parity)
everyday costs about 1.2% lower than average
What that income buys
$56,174
local income restated at U.S.-average prices
20% below the U.S. average
Cheaper than U.S. avgU.S. average (100)Pricier

This county isn't in a metro area that BEA prices separately, so cost of living shows the Illinois (state avg) figure.

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Where the cost comes from · price parity by category

Index where 100 = U.S. average for that category. Housing is usually what separates one place from another.

Housing & rents92.4
Goods101.6
Utilities80.4
Other services99.8

Housing is measured from rents (including an estimated rental value for owner-occupied homes), so a run-up in purchase prices shows here only as it reaches rents. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer income above. How the data works.

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Who lives here

The people of Whiteside County, IL

American Community Survey, 2019–2023 (a 5-year average of all residents, not just tax filers).

Median age
43.4
years
Median household income
$64,536
per household (ACS 2019–2023, nominal)
18% below the U.S. median
College degree
20%
adults 25+ with a bachelor's or higher
Poverty rate
12.1%
residents below the poverty line
Average commute
20 min
mean travel time to work
Broadband at home
84%
households with any broadband
Race and ethnicity (share of residents)
White 82%Hispanic 13%Black 1%Asian 0%Other 3%

White, Black, and Asian counts are people who are not Hispanic or Latino; Hispanic or Latino can be of any race. Shares are rounded and may not total 100.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Covers all residents, a separate universe from the IRS filer data. A 5-year estimate is an average over 2019–2023; compare years at least five apart, since consecutive windows overlap. How the data works.

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Housing · what it costs to live here (ACS 2019–2023)

Median home value
$125,800
owner-occupied homes
59% below the U.S. median
Median rent
$808
gross rent per month
40% below the U.S. median
Homeownership
75%
of occupied homes are owner-occupied
Home-price appreciation · FHFA index, 2023
Past year
+3.3%
price change, 2022 to 2023
Past 5 years
+28%
price change, 2018 to 2023

A repeat-sales index (how much the same homes changed in price), so it tracks the market over time rather than the current level. Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency, annual all-transactions HPI; the county series is FHFA’s developmental index.

New home construction · building permits, 2023
26new housing units authorized in 2023
Single-family 100%Multifamily 0%

Units authorized by residential building permits (new supply), summed from counties for the state and U.S. Permits are authorizations, not completions. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.

Home value is what owners estimate their homes are worth, not recent sale prices. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2019–2023), nominal dollars. How the data works.

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Local economy & risk

Jobs and natural hazards

Unemployment rate
4.7%
BLS 2023 annual average
Labor force
27,565
26,271 employed
Disaster declarations
major federal, 2023

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS) and FEMA. A disaster declaration marks federal assistance eligibility, not damage severity, and says nothing about why anyone moved. How the data works.

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Unemployment now
4.3%
April 2026 · ▲ 0.6 points vs April 2025
January 2024April 2026

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS). Monthly unemployment for this county, not seasonally adjusted. Updated every month, so it moves faster than the annual average above. How the data works.

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How Whiteside County, IL has voted. Certified returns, popular vote only. This is a separate dataset from the migration figures on this page.

YearDemocraticRepublicanOtherMarginTotal
202411,01214,898537R +14.726,447
202012,25314,527595R +8.327,375
201611,03512,6151,932R +6.225,582
201214,83310,334487D +17.525,654
200815,60710,883416D +17.626,906
200413,72312,959191D +2.826,873
200012,88611,252699D +6.624,837

Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab county returns (CC0). Margins are the popular-vote gap as a share of all votes cast.

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