How Safe Is Your Suburb? Chicago-Area Communities Get 2026 Grades

CHICAGO — Data and analytics website Niche has released its 2026 Crime and Safety grades for suburbs across the Chicago area.

The grades are based on crime rates for murder, assault, rape, burglary and other offenses, along with reviews from residents. Niche's Chicago-area Safe Suburbs report includes 173 communities across the metropolitan region and only includes suburbs that earned what the website describes as strong Crime & Safety grades.

Because Niche's definition of the Chicago metropolitan area extends into Indiana, its original list includes several Northwest Indiana communities. For this Illinois-focused list, Patch is including only the Illinois suburbs.

Here are the Illinois communities included in the report, grouped by their Crime and Safety grade:

A plus

Tower Lakes

Bull Valley

A

Clarendon Hills

Hawthorn Woods

South Barrington

Indian Head Park

Campton Hills

Fox River Grove

Prairie Grove

Lakewood

Cary

Wayne

Palos Park

Golf

A minus

Kildeer

Western Springs

Northbrook

Lake Bluff

Kenilworth

Winfield

Itasca

Bartlett

Pingree Grove

Huntley

Willow Springs

Elburn

Spring Grove

Round Lake Heights

Johnsburg

Rockdale

B plus

Riverside

Lincolnshire

Bannockburn

Lake Forest

Libertyville

Glen Ellyn

Riverwoods

Wheaton

Deerfield

Northfield

Burr Ridge

Lake Zurich

Westmont

Orland Hills

Lake Villa

Sleepy Hollow

Bloomingdale

Algonquin

Lindenhurst

Lake in the Hills

Minooka

Richmond

Sugar Grove

Island Lake

Wonder Lake

Forest View

Hampshire

East Hazel Crest

Stone Park

B

Naperville

Buffalo Grove

La Grange

Hinsdale

River Forest

Wilmette

La Grange Park

Highland Park

Lisle

Oak Brook

Elmhurst

Park Ridge

Morton Grove

Arlington Heights

Geneva

Winnetka

Inverness

Grayslake

Glencoe

Warrenville

Batavia

Darien

Flossmoor

Hoffman Estates

Niles

Gilberts

Frankfort

Oswego

Crystal Lake

Hodgkins

South Elgin

Elk Grove Village

Glendale Heights

East Dundee

Shorewood

Wauconda

New Lenox

Woodstock

North Aurora

Yorkville

Homer Glen

Antioch

Palos Heights

Channahon

Manhattan

Wood Dale

Round Lake Park

Justice

Stickney

Berkeley

B minus

Vernon Hills

Glenview

Willowbrook

Downers Grove

Schaumburg

Rolling Meadows

Barrington

Woodridge

Brookfield

Mount Prospect

Lincolnwood

Countryside

Oakbrook Terrace

Lombard

St. Charles

North Riverside

Mundelein

Plainfield

Carol Stream

Harwood Heights

Orland Park

Des Plaines

Roselle

West Dundee

Prospect Heights

Lemont

Highwood

Mokena

Hanover Park

Hometown

Oak Forest

Norridge

Hainesville

Elmwood Park

Tinley Park

Lockport

Westchester

River Grove

Palos Hills

Carpentersville

Olympia Fields

Montgomery

Hickory Hills

Addison

Crete

Broadview

Bensenville

Plano

Monee

Hillside

Posen

McCook

Niche's list stops at communities receiving strong Crime and Safety grades rather than extending through C- and D-range grades. The company's broader Chicago-area database contains substantially more suburbs than the 173 included in its Safe Suburbs report.

The Crime and Safety grade is also separate from a community's overall Niche grade. For example, Niche currently gives Naperville an A-plus overall grade but a B for Crime and Safety, while Northbrook has an A-plus overall grade and an A-minus for Crime and Safety.

Find the full list here