Chicago-Naperville-Elgin migration, mapped
In 2022–23, 137,238 people moved into the Chicago metro and 182,479 moved out, a net of −45,241. Yellow arcs are people arriving, blue arcs are people leaving. Hover a dot to see the corridor, or click through to compare.
The map couldn’t load. The numbers below still tell the story.
† IRS methodology change in this year’s files (see methodology)
What the flows say
- Biggest published corridors: more arrivals come from New York, NY-NJ than anywhere else: 5,128 people in 2022–23. The top destination for leavers is Dallas, TX (5,931). The listed corridors cover about 69–71% of all flows; the totals count everyone.
- Trend: net outflow has eased over the last three years, from −92,423 in 2020–21 to −45,241 in 2022–23†.
Population · 2025
9,434,123
▲ 0.2% year over year · growing
Peak population · 2020
9,435,971
0.0% below the 2020 peak
Why the population is changing
- Growth driver: the population grew in 2025 even after losing 33,708 people to domestic migration. International migration (+37,963) and births minus deaths (+18,274) more than made up for it.
- Peak population: the high-water mark was 9,435,971 in 2020. The 2025 estimate of 9,434,123 sits just below it.
Net income flow · 2022–23
−$5.0B
▼ $7.9B arrived · $12.9B left
Avg household income · movers
$85k in · $112k out
leavers out-earn arrivals by 32%
Chicago wealth migration
- Money moved: households moving into the Chicago metro in 2022–23 reported $7.9B in income (AGI). Households leaving took $12.9B with them, a net loss of $5.0B.
- Income gap: the average household moving in reported $85k of income, vs $112k for leavers. Leavers out-earn arrivals by 32%.
About the data
Corridors are IRS county-to-county migration flows added up into metro areas (2023 Census metro definitions; exemptions ≈ people). "Rest of" entries cover a state's counties outside any featured metro. The IRS hides corridors with fewer than 20 returns, so the lists here cover about 69% of inbound and 71% of outbound movers in 2022–23. The in, out, and net totals count everyone. Income figures are the total income (AGI) movers reported, from the complete county totals. Dollars are not adjusted for inflation, and household averages divide by the number of returns. Population figures are Census Bureau estimates; the peak covers records since 2000. Years marked † had a change in how the IRS built the files. Full details on the methodology page.
Download this data (CSV), free to use with attribution.
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