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You're at your local Whole Foods shopping for kale chips and asparagus water, trying to work out if you'll have time to stop at the Pottery Barn before you head to your yoga class taught by a girl named Sage. It hits you: you're leading the whitest life imaginable.
But does that mean the city you live in is one of the whitest places in Illinois?
Don't worry, we've figured it out for you. Using actual census data combined with our favorite white people stereotypes (as confirmed by the internet), we can determine which cities are the whitest of the white in Prairie State.
After analyzing cities with populations greater than 5,000, we came up with this list as the whitest cities in Illinois for 2023.
Here are the 10 whites places in Illinois for 2023:
What is the whitest city in Illinois for 2023? According to the most recent census data Pana ranks as the whitest. If you're wondering, Calumet Park is the least white city of all those we measured.
Read on below to see where your hometown ranked and why. Or check out the whitest states in America and the most diverse states in America.
For more Illinois reading, check out:
The 10 Whitest Cities In Illinois For 2023
1. Pana
/10
Population: 5,304
% White: 97.17%
More on Pana: Real Estate | Data | Photos
2. Paris
/10
Population: 8,553
% White: 96.98%
More on Paris: Real Estate | Data
3. West Frankfort
/10
Population: 7,299
% White: 96.41%
More on West Frankfort: Real Estate | Data | Photos
4. Jerseyville
/10
Population: 7,674
% White: 95.71%
More on Jerseyville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
5. Litchfield
/10
Population: 6,960
% White: 95.69%
More on Litchfield: Real Estate | Data | Photos
6. Columbia
/10
Population: 11,090
% White: 95.51%
More on Columbia: Real Estate | Data | Photos
7. Waterloo
/10
Population: 10,906
% White: 95.25%
More on Waterloo: Real Estate | Data | Photos
8. Monticello
/10
Population: 6,202
% White: 95.1%
More on Monticello: Real Estate | Data | Photos
9. Taylorville
/10
Population: 11,163
% White: 94.97%
More on Taylorville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
10. Carmi
/10
Population: 5,012
% White: 94.91%
More on Carmi: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Methodology: How we determined the whitest places in Illinois for 2023
In order to rank the whitest places in Illinois, we had to determine what measurable criteria defines whiteness.
Obviously we had to count how many white people living there, specifically the percentage of white people living in each city in Illinois.
Specifically, we looked at table B03002: Hispanic OR LATINO ORIGIN BY RACE. Here are the category names as defined by the Census:
- Hispanic or Latino
- White alone*
- Black or African American alone*
- American Indian and Alaska Native alone*
- Asian alone*
- Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone*
- Some other race alone*
- Two or more races*
Our particular column of interest here was the number of people who identified as White alone.
We limited our analysis to non-CDPs with a population greater than 5,000 people. That left us with 326 cities.
We then calculated the percent of residents that are White. The percentages ranked from 97.2% to 1.4%.
Finally, we ranked each city based on the percent of White population with a higher score being more White than a lower score. Pana took the distinction of being the most White, while Calumet Park was the least White city. You can download the data here.
Read on for more information on how the cities in Illinois ranked by population of White residents or, for a more general take on diversity in America, head over to our ranking of the most diverse cities in America.
Summary: White Populations Across Illinois
Measuring the locations with the highest percentage of white people, this list provides accurate information on the whitest places in Illinois according to the most recent data.
If you're curious enough, here are the least White places in Illinois:
- Calumet Park
- East St. Louis
- Riverdale
For more Illinois reading, check out:
White Population By City In { state|title }}
| Rank | City | % White |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pana | 97.17% |
| 2 | Paris | 96.98% |
| 3 | West Frankfort | 96.41% |
| 4 | Jerseyville | 95.71% |
| 5 | Litchfield | 95.69% |
| 6 | Columbia | 95.51% |
| 7 | Waterloo | 95.25% |
| 8 | Monticello | 95.1% |
| 9 | Taylorville | 94.97% |
| 10 | Carmi | 94.91% |
| 11 | Bethalto | 94.56% |
| 12 | Washington | 94.4% |
| 13 | Geneseo | 94.38% |
| 14 | Glencoe | 93.48% |
| 15 | Hampshire | 93.42% |
| 16 | Princeton | 93.21% |
| 17 | Bartonville | 93.19% |
| 18 | Mount Carmel | 93.14% |
| 19 | Morton | 93.08% |
| 20 | Mattoon | 92.85% |
| 21 | Salem | 92.76% |
| 22 | Chatham | 92.57% |
| 23 | Carlinville | 92.53% |
| 24 | Mount Zion | 92.27% |
| 25 | Benton | 92.23% |
| 26 | East Peoria | 92.15% |
| 27 | Olney | 91.99% |
| 28 | Mokena | 91.76% |
| 29 | Effingham | 91.45% |
| 30 | New Lenox | 91.26% |
| 31 | Braidwood | 91.23% |
| 32 | Godfrey | 91.14% |
| 33 | Western Springs | 91.14% |
| 34 | Coal City | 91.05% |
| 35 | Winnetka | 91.02% |
| 36 | Highland | 90.95% |
| 37 | Eureka | 90.88% |
| 38 | Pekin | 90.78% |
| 39 | East Alton | 90.73% |
| 40 | Clinton | 90.61% |
| 41 | Mahomet | 90.32% |
| 42 | Wood River | 90.31% |
| 43 | Manhattan | 89.93% |
| 44 | Troy | 89.87% |
| 45 | Chillicothe | 89.78% |
| 46 | Harrisburg | 89.65% |
| 47 | Manteno | 89.61% |
| 48 | Lemont | 89.13% |
| 49 | Campton Hills | 88.98% |
| 50 | Peru | 88.89% |
| 51 | Northfield | 88.81% |
| 52 | Rockton | 88.66% |
| 53 | Johnsburg | 88.17% |
| 54 | Deerfield | 88.16% |
| 55 | Wilmington | 87.97% |
| 56 | Quincy | 87.39% |
| 57 | Sandwich | 87.37% |
| 58 | Homer Glen | 87.31% |
| 59 | Du Quoin | 87.21% |
| 60 | Carterville | 87.21% |
| 61 | Palos Heights | 86.99% |
| 62 | Metropolis | 86.87% |
| 63 | Lincoln | 86.82% |
| 64 | Glen Carbon | 86.71% |
| 65 | Peoria Heights | 86.62% |
| 66 | Sycamore | 86.49% |
| 67 | Herrin | 86.22% |
| 68 | Milan | 86.2% |
| 69 | South Beloit | 85.95% |
| 70 | Marion | 85.77% |
| 71 | Channahon | 85.58% |
| 72 | Lakemoor | 85.28% |
| 73 | Spring Grove | 85.16% |
| 74 | Park Ridge | 85.08% |
| 75 | Geneva | 84.78% |
| 76 | Machesney Park | 84.63% |
| 77 | Genoa | 84.63% |
| 78 | Lake Zurich | 84.45% |
| 79 | Highland Park | 84.38% |
| 80 | Lake Bluff | 84.18% |
| 81 | Charleston | 84.09% |
| 82 | Canton | 84.07% |
| 83 | Norridge | 84.07% |
| 84 | Lockport | 84.05% |
| 85 | Cary | 84.01% |
| 86 | Maryville | 83.61% |
| 87 | Edwardsville | 83.5% |
| 88 | Libertyville | 83.45% |
| 89 | Elburn | 83.4% |
| 90 | Antioch | 83.36% |
| 91 | Roscoe | 83.28% |
| 92 | Barrington | 83.24% |
| 93 | Morris | 83.21% |
| 94 | Ottawa | 83.2% |
| 95 | Batavia | 82.95% |
| 96 | Winthrop Harbor | 82.95% |
| 97 | Winfield | 82.93% |
| 98 | Downers Grove | 82.8% |
| 99 | Fox Lake | 82.29% |
| 100 | Mascoutah | 82.09% |
