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Gridley, Illinois

Gridley is a small town of about 1,400 people in McLean County, Illinois. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 2.1 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Chicago, is about 98 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,428
down 1.7% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$141,300
McLean County prices up 21% since 2022
Household income
$67,250
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Bloomington area
93.5
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
18 miles
Normal, IL
To Chicago
98 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 6.5% below the U.S. average in the Bloomington metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 2.1 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Gridley itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
  • Schools in town1 public school. No public high school in town: the nearest is El Paso-Gridley High School, about 7 miles away.
  • A hospital close byCarle Bromenn Medical Center in Normal, about 18 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityChicago is about 98 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 Gridley 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.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$141,300U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 21%McLean County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$808 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$67,250U.S.: $80,734
Typical property tax bill
$2,944 a yearIllinois: $5,298
Homes built before 1940
22%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
6%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
93.5U.S. average = 100 (the Bloomington metro area)

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 21% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Bloomington metro area, not Gridley 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
1,4282020: 1,453
Median age
37.6 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
20%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
26%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
28%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
3%U.S.: 6%

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 (33%); manufacturing (15%); finance, insurance and real estate (14%)
Unemployment rate
3%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
26 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
13%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
6%U.S.: 12%

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

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Carle Bromenn Medical Center, Normal, IL, about 18 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 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

1 public school in Gridley, run by El Paso-Gridley CUSD 11. The nearest public high school is El Paso-Gridley High School, about 7 miles away.

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.

Weather

January average low
15°F
July average high
84°F
Days 90°F or hotter
23 a year
Nights at or below freezing
127 a year
Rain and melted snow
36.3 inches a year
Snow
20 inches a year
Elevation
756 feet

Weather station: Chenoa (9 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

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: Carle Bromenn Medical Center, Normal, Chicago.

McLean County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

Read about Gridley's history on Wikipedia.

Know Gridley?

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

Smaller places

  • Kappa, IL231 people, 8 miles
  • Towanda, IL423 people, 13 miles
  • Secor, IL335 people, 13 miles
  • Benson, IL403 people, 15 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

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.