Living in Carbondale, Illinois: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 12.6% below the U.S. average in the parts of Illinois outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 4 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood216 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 9.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 24.5 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town7 public schools: 5 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
A hospital close byMemorial Hospital of Carbondale is in town and has an emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySt. Louis is about 84 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Carbondale meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

What kind of town

College town. About 37% of residents are college students, with Southern Illinois University-Carbondale in town. Concerts, sports and good food all year, and a big employer that rarely closes. Expect higher home prices close to campus.

The book sorts small towns into six types. These labels come only from the numbers; take the quiz to see which type fits your family.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $127,900U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 20%Jackson County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $771 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $32,128U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 26%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $3,166 a yearIllinois: $5,298
Homes built before 1940: 5%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 9%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 1%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 87.4U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Illinois outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 20% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Illinois outside metro areas, not Carbondale alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 21,8112020: 22,285
Median age: 24.6 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 10%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 13%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 48%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 22%U.S.: 6%
College students: 37%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (40%); retail (15%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (14%)
Unemployment rate: 10%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 16 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 12%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 37%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, Carbondale, IL, in town. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 1 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

7 public schools in Carbondale, run by Carbondale ESD 95 and Carbondale CHSD 165.

Colleges in or next to town: Southern Illinois University-Carbondale (10,000 to 19,999 students).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Illinois's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 59%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 85%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 23°F
July average high: 88°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 38 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 103 a year
Rain and melted snow: 49 inches a year
Snow: 11 inches a year
Elevation: 449 feet

Weather station: Carbondale Sewage Plt (3 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

St. Louis, MOMetro of 2.8 million84

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: St. Louis.

Jackson County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 5, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

4 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the West Walnut Street Historic District.

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Ste. Genevieve National Historical Park46 miles

Campus life. Check Southern Illinois University-Carbondale's events calendar for games, concerts and plays open to the public.

Read about Carbondale's history on Wikipedia.

Know Carbondale?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

De Soto, IL1,400 people, 6 miles
Murphysboro, IL7,000 people, 7 miles
Cambria, IL1,800 people, 7 miles
Carterville, IL5,800 people, 8 miles
Crainville, IL1,500 people, 9 miles
Herrin, IL12,300 people, 12 miles

Smaller places

Makanda, IL542 people, 7 miles
Harrison, IL (unincorporated)830 people, 8 miles
Blairsville, IL (unincorporated)231 people, 8 miles
Hurst, IL751 people, 9 miles
Bush, IL236 people, 10 miles
Colp, IL175 people, 10 miles
Energy, IL960 people, 11 miles
Alto Pass, IL300 people, 12 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.