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COUNTY

Whiteside County

Illinois · 54,121 residents (2025 est.) · 684 sq mi
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The short version

Whiteside County is a county of 54,947 people in Illinois. Four-year degrees are less common here than nationally, at 20% of adults. The typical home is worth $127,100, having risen by half since 2000. Owners hold 77% of the housing stock. The median age is 43.0, about 4 years above the US median. 3% of people here were born outside the United States.

At a glance
Lower income
below the US median
US median: $82,259
Older
median age 43.0
US median: 38.9
Less educated
20% hold a bachelor's degree
US average: 36%
More affordable
home values down 8%, inflation adjusted
US median home: $376,019
Section 01

Population & growth

Total population
54,947
−9%since 2000
from 60,653 in 2000
54,121 in 2025 (Census Bureau estimate)
1990 – 2025
Population density
80 / sq mi
−7%since 2009
from 86 / sq mi in 2009
US average: 281
Median age
43.0
+12%since 2000
from 38.5 in 2000
US average: 38.9
Land area
684 sq mi
Population, 1990 – 2024
54K56K58K60K61K19902000201020202024Whiteside County
202455K
1990201020202024
Age distribution, 2024
Under 55.5%(3,008)
US avg: 5.6%
5 to 96.5%(3,564)
US avg: 6%
10 to 146%(3,324)
US avg: 6.4%
15 to 196%(3,275)
US avg: 6.6%
20 to 245.6%(3,103)
US avg: 6.5%
25 to 3411.2%(6,133)
US avg: 13.7%
35 to 4411.2%(6,151)
US avg: 13.2%
45 to 5412.2%(6,684)
US avg: 12.2%
55 to 6414.1%(7,738)
US avg: 12.7%
65 to 7412.6%(6,896)
US avg: 10.2%
75 to 846.5%(3,589)
US avg: 5.1%
85 and over2.7%(1,482)
US avg: 1.9%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 02

Income & economy

Median household income
$67,500
−8%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $40,354 in 2000
US average: $82,259
1990 – 2024
Per capita income
$37,312
+93%since 2000
from $19,296 in 2000
US average: $44,673
Households earning $100K+
45.1%
+22.1 ptssince 2009
from 23.0% in 2009
US average: 53.3%
Poverty rate
12.0%
+3.5 ptssince 2000
from 8.5% in 2000
US average: 12.5%
Income inequality (Gini)
0.439
+7%since 2010
from 0.411 in 2010
US average: 0.476
Workforce by industry, 2024
Retail trade20.6%
US avg: 9.9%
Information12.2%
US avg: 10.8%
Finance & insurance6.4%
US avg: 5.9%
Wholesale trade5.4%
US avg: 6.9%
Professional, scientific, technical5%
US avg: 5.1%
Other services3.7%
US avg: 6.7%
Public administration3%
US avg: 4.8%
Agriculture, forestry, fishing2.6%
US avg: 1.6%
Transportation & warehousing2.6%
US avg: 2.2%
Construction2.4%
US avg: 1.2%
Education & health services1.4%
US avg: 0.9%
Arts, entertainment, food0.7%
US avg: 1.9%
Manufacturing0.2%
US avg: 0.4%
BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Section 03

Housing

Median home value
$127,100
−8%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $75,700 in 2000
US average: $376,019
1990 – 2024
Median gross rent
$856
+1%inflation adjusted, since 2000
from $463 in 2000
US average: $1,442
Owner-occupied
76.9%
+2.5 ptssince 2000
from 74.5% in 2000
23.1% rent
Vacancy rate
10.5%
+3.6 ptssince 2009
from 6.9% in 2009
US average: 10.0%
Persons per household
2.33 people
−4%since 2009
from 2.43 people in 2009
US average: 2.54
Owner cost-burdened
14.6%
−5.6 ptssince 2009
from 20.2% in 2009
US average: 22.9%
Renter cost-burdened
39.8%
−4.7 ptssince 2009
from 44.5% in 2009
US average: 47.4%
Afford Score
1.9
−14%since 2009
from 2.2 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Years of local income it takes to buy a local home, on a scale of about 0 to 15. Lower is more affordable.
Gentrification Score
25
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means faster recent growth in incomes, home values, and college degrees.
Section 04

Race & ethnicity

2000
White, non-Hispanic88.9%(53,946)
Black1%(577)
Hispanic / Latino8.8%(5,347)
Asian0.4%(247)
Other0%
2024
White, non-Hispanic80.9%(44,454)
Black1.2%(668)
Hispanic / Latino13.3%(7,319)
Asian0.5%(275)
Other4.1%(2,231)
Diversity Score
41
+43%since 2009
from 28 in 2009
2009 – 2024
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means a more even mix of racial and ethnic groups.
Segregation Score
35
−19%since 2020
from 44 in 2020
Our index, 0 to 100. Higher means White and non-White residents are more separated across neighborhoods.
Section 04 · Origins

Detailed origins & ancestry

Hispanic origin
Mexican10.8%(5,932)
Puerto Rican1.5%(807)
Spaniard0.3%(181)
Guatemalan0.2%(126)
Cuban0.1%(64)
Dominican0%(26)
Argentine0%(25)
Peruvian0%(14)
Asian origin
Filipino0.2%(137)
Asian Indian0.1%(63)
Chinese0.1%(39)
Burmese0%(21)
Korean0%(5)
Thai0%(1)
Pacific Islander origin
Samoan0%(8)
Ancestry
German27.2%(14,938)
Irish13.7%(7,530)
English10.4%(5,721)
Dutch7%(3,841)
American6.2%(3,419)
Swedish2.3%(1,281)
Polish2.3%(1,245)
Italian2.2%(1,209)
French1.8%(1,012)
Scottish1.6%(857)
Norwegian1.4%(780)
Scotch-Irish0.7%(361)
+ 29 more ancestry groups with data
Belgian0.7%(360)
Danish0.6%(308)
Welsh0.4%(229)
British0.3%(185)
Russian0.3%(152)
Swiss0.2%(137)
Czech0.2%(128)
Nigerian0.2%(124)
Lithuanian0.2%(111)
Hungarian0.1%(82)
Greek0.1%(78)
Portuguese0.1%(72)
Serbian0.1%(61)
Arab0.1%(56)
Romanian0.1%(52)
Iranian0.1%(48)
Slovene0.1%(33)
Ukrainian0.1%(31)
Croatian0.1%(28)
Jordanian0%(26)
Bulgarian0%(21)
Austrian0%(19)
Finnish0%(16)
Lebanese0%(11)
Section 05

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher
20.5%
+9.1 ptssince 2000
from 11.3% in 2000
US average: 35.6%
High school or higher
91.9%
+12.1 ptssince 2000
from 79.8% in 2000
US average: 89.6%
Graduate degree
7.7%
+4.3 ptssince 2000
from 3.4% in 2000
US average: 14.0%
Section 06

Commute & transportation

Average commute
20.3 min
+56%since 2000
from 13.0 min in 2000
US average: 26.5
Drive alone to work
80.8%
−2.2 ptssince 2009
from 83.0% in 2009
US average: 68.9%
Carpooled to work
8.6%
−1.1 ptssince 2009
from 9.7% in 2009
US average: 8.5%
Public transit
0.3%
−0.4 ptssince 2009
from 0.8% in 2009
US average: 3.2%
Worked from home
6.1%
+3.3 ptssince 2009
from 2.8% in 2009
US average: 15.0%
Walked to work
2.7%
+0.1 ptssince 2009
from 2.5% in 2009
US average: 2.4%
Biked to work
0.9%
+0.5 ptssince 2009
from 0.4% in 2009
US average: 0.4%
No vehicle available
5.8%
−0.2 ptssince 2009
from 6.0% in 2009
US average: 8.3%
Section 07

Work & employment

Unemployment rate
4.4%
−3.7 ptssince 2011
from 8.0% in 2011
US average: 5.2%
Labor force participation
61.9%
−1.7 ptssince 2011
from 63.6% in 2011
US average: 63.5%
Women 20-64 in the labor force
77.5%
+0.8 ptssince 2020
from 76.7% in 2020
US average: 74.6%
Self-employed
14.6%
+2.0 ptssince 2009
from 12.5% in 2009
US average: 13.1%
Management & professional
32.9%
+7.7 ptssince 2009
from 25.2% in 2009
US average: 42.5%
Section 08

People & community

Male
49.9%
+0.8 ptssince 2009
from 49.0% in 2009
Female
50.1%
−0.8 ptssince 2009
from 51.0% in 2009
Foreign born
3.0%
+0.7 ptssince 2009
from 2.4% in 2009
US average: 14.1%
Veterans
8.1%
−3.1 ptssince 2009
from 11.1% in 2009
US average: 6.2%
With a disability
15.2%
+1.3 ptssince 2012
from 13.9% in 2012
US average: 13.3%
Uninsured
5.0%
−5.6 ptssince 2013
from 10.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Broadband at home
86.7%
+10.9 ptssince 2017
from 75.8% in 2017
US average: 91.0%
Computer in household
93.3%
+5.0 ptssince 2020
from 88.3% in 2020
US average: 95.5%
Same house as last year
92.4%
+4.0 ptssince 2020
from 88.5% in 2020
US average: 87.7%
English only at home
92.8%
−0.3 ptssince 2016
from 93.1% in 2016
US average: 77.7%
Spanish at home
5.8%
+0.7 ptssince 2016
from 5.1% in 2016
US average: 13.6%
Marital status
Men 15+
Never married34.9%(7,793)
Married50.2%(11,199)
Widowed3.7%(832)
Divorced11.2%(2,494)
Women 15+
Never married26.1%(5,944)
Married48.9%(11,121)
Widowed11.1%(2,530)
Divorced13.8%(3,138)
SHARE WITHIN EACH SEX · POPULATION 15 AND OVER · 2024
Section 09

Health coverage

Uninsured
5.0%
−5.6 ptssince 2013
from 10.6% in 2013
US average: 8.4%
Employer-based
57.5%
+0.5 ptssince 2020
from 57.0% in 2020
US average: 54.8%
Direct-purchase
15.0%
−1.5 ptssince 2020
from 16.5% in 2020
US average: 13.8%
Medicare
23.1%
+1.1 ptssince 2020
from 22.0% in 2020
US average: 18.4%
Medicaid
19.2%
+1.2 ptssince 2020
from 18.0% in 2020
US average: 20.9%
VA health care
3.0%
−0.1 ptssince 2020
from 3.1% in 2020
US average: 2.2%
Any private
70.1%
−1.2 ptssince 2020
from 71.3% in 2020
US average: 67.1%
Any public
40.7%
+2.1 ptssince 2020
from 38.6% in 2020
US average: 36.7%

Shares are "alone or in combination": a person with both Medicare and Medicaid counts in each, so categories overlap and do not sum to 100%.

Section 09 · Service history

Veterans

Veterans by period of service, 2024
Gulf War (2001 or later)12.6%(436)
US avg: 26.4%
Gulf War (1990s)18.3%(634)
US avg: 24.3%
Vietnam era38.1%(1,320)
US avg: 33.1%
Korean War7%(242)
US avg: 4.5%
World War II0.7%(26)
US avg: 1%

Share of the 3,468 veterans here. A veteran who served across eras counts in each, so shares can total more than 100%. Peacetime-only service is included in the total but not shown as an era.

BAR + DOT: THIS PLACE · TICK: US AVERAGE
Drill deeper

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Head to head

Compare Whiteside County to nearby counties

WHITESIDE COUNTY VS
Carroll County
Income$60,758−10%
Home value$114,500−10%
Population15,419−72%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WHITESIDE COUNTY VS
Henry County
Income$71,911+7%
Home value$151,600+19%
Population48,095−11%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WHITESIDE COUNTY VS
Bureau County
Income$69,257+3%
Home value$126,900same
Population32,510−40%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
WHITESIDE COUNTY VS
Lee County
Income$70,292+4%
Home value$154,600+22%
Population32,914−39%
SEE FULL COMPARISON →
Frequently asked

How many people live in Whiteside County, Illinois?

Whiteside County, Illinois has about 54,947 residents according to the 2024 American Community Survey.

What is the median household income in Whiteside County, Illinois?

The typical household in Whiteside County, Illinois earns about $67,500 a year. Half of households make more than that, and half make less.

Is Whiteside County, Illinois expensive?

In Whiteside County, Illinois, the median home is worth about $127,100, and the typical rent is about $856 a month.

How educated are people in Whiteside County, Illinois?

About 20.5% of adults age 25 and over in Whiteside County, Illinois hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

What is the poverty rate in Whiteside County, Illinois?

About 12.0% of people in Whiteside County, Illinois live below the federal poverty line.

Has Whiteside County, Illinois grown since 1990?

Yes, Whiteside County, Illinois has shrunk since 1990. The population has lost about 5,239 residents, a change of about -9 percent over that period.

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DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR + DECENNIAL CENSUS · UPDATED 2024

How we source and harmonize this data →

Whiteside County, Illinois: demographics, income & housing data · CensusEasy