Marion, Illinois
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Growing. Up 1.9% since 2020.
17,148
people, the 150th-largest of Illinois's cities and towns.
Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among Illinois's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates
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The workday
8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
84.0%
of 17,427 jobs located in Marion are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 60% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$921
a month. Illinois's median is $1,274.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $506.
A $506 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Williamson County.
- $647 Tract 201
- $1,153 Tract 202.02
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$954–$1,431
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $921 median
Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year
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Building
74% of the housing here was built before 2000.
- 356 homes permitted, 2022–2025
- 71% of those were in multifamily buildings
- 74% of all homes were built before 2000
Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.3–1.9% to the 9,050 homes here.
26–174
is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.
Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac
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Home value
A median home costs 40% less than Illinois's.
$158,300
median home value in Marion.
- $158,300 Marion
- $263,300 Illinois
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year