What is the cost of living in Kankakee?

Kankakee has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 96.4, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 92.9, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,326/month.

What is the median salary in Kankakee?

The median salary in Kankakee is $61,541 annually (mean: $64,975). Top occupations include Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.

How safe is Kankakee?

The violent crime rate in the Kankakee area is 277 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1665 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Kankakee?

The state of IL has 3,845 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14:1. Charter schools make up 3.5% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Kankakee?

Infant center-based childcare in the Kankakee area averages $12,257 per year. Preschool averages $9,481/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Kankakee a good place to relocate?

Kankakee has a Life Score of 40.4/100 (F), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a below-average score, several dimensions likely pull the composite down; compare specific dimensions to see which ones.

Where does Kankakee sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Kankakee ranks #292 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Kankakee, IL

LiveAbility 44/100 places Kankakee #292 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

96.4
Cost index (US=100): $1,326
2BR rent / mo: $61,541
Median salary: 44
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Kankakee ranks #292 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (44/100), with its strongest marks in safety and schools.

#292
of 387 US metros · Below median: 12,710,158
metro-area population: 277
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 3,845
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: low hazard (26/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Kankakee ranks #292 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 96.4 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,326/mo, median salary $61,541; LiveAbility Score 44/100, strongest in safety and schools.

Signature: LiveAbility 44/100 places Kankakee #292 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 96.4 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,326/mo.

LiveAbility 44/100 puts Kankakee in the bottom third (#292 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Kankakee area is 36,680.

Kankakee vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

44 Top 75% higher than 25% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Kankakee housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Kankakee MSA; housing RPP 92.9 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,326/mo.

Studio

$914

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,011

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,326

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,745

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,774

/month

Kankakee wages and employment

Kankakee posts 36,680 total employment with median salary $61,541.

Median Salary

$61,541

Mean Salary

$64,975

Total Employment

36,680

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Registered Nurses	$86,220
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$31,220
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$37,110
Cashiers	$31,200
Retail Salespersons	$32,650

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Kankakee area from NCES.

Schools

3,845

Enrollment

1,844,783

Student:Teacher

14:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Kankakee area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$12,257

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,556

per year

Preschool (Center)

$9,481

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Kankakee's composite Life Score is 40.4/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

37/100

Below average

Wages

33/100

Weak

Rent

48/100

Average

Crime

64/100

Above average

Schools

39/100

Below average

Childcare

27/100

Weak

Environment

31/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Kankakee ranks #292 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 44/100 - a composite of 7 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized). Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Safety (64/100)

Safety

64
Schools

61
Housing

48
Climate

40
Cost of living

37
Job market

33
Low hazard

26

What this shows Kankakee's strongest dimensions are safety and schools; its weakest among scored dims is low hazard at 26/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%; this metro uses 7 of 8 dims with renormalized weights.

Compare Kankakee to

Roanoke Rochester Rochester Rockford Rocky Mount Rome

Metros near Kankakee on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Kankakee on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Kankakee cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Kankakee wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Kankakee?

Kankakee runs a $61,541 median salary at a 96.4 cost index, ranking #292 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Kankakee's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Kankakee head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Kankakee
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.