United States · North America
Moving to Chicago
Chicago quick facts
United States at a glance
North America
Economy
World Bank · 2025Religion
% of populationCIA World Factbook / national censuses
Cost of living in Chicago
Can you move to United States?
Pick your passport to see whether you can enter United States — and what it takes to stay.
Entry rules come from github.com/imorte/passport-index-data, updated 17 February 2026. They change without notice — confirm with the official immigration service before booking.
Getting set up in United States
Status, Social Security number and the Illinois TVDL
There is no post-arrival registration in the US: your I-94 record is your status. In the first weeks you need a Social Security number if work-authorised, or an ITIN if not. Illinois gives a comfortable 90 days for the driver licence, and provides a specific route — the TVDL — for residents ineligible for an SSN, which several states do not.
Read the full step-by-step guideNinety days, no IDP, and surrender everything
You may drive on a valid foreign licence for 90 days after moving to Illinois. After that you need an Illinois licence, which means a vision screening, the required documentation and — for most people — the written and road tests. Two Illinois quirks matter: the state does not recognise the International Driving Permit at all, and it requires you to surrender every out-of-state licence and ID you hold before it will issue. Given how good Chicago's transit is, decide whether you need this at all.
Read the full step-by-step guideOpening a bank account and building US credit from zero
You can open a US account without a Social Security number: federal rules let a bank use your passport number and country of issuance, or an ITIN, as the identifying number. The credit problem is the standard American one — no US file scores worse than a bad one, and it blocks apartments and phone contracts. In Chicago the saving grace is that you can genuinely live without a car, which removes the most expensive consequence.
Read the full step-by-step guideGet Covered Illinois, Medicaid and the county system
Coverage comes from an employer, from Get Covered Illinois, or from Illinois Medicaid if your income qualifies. Illinois expanded Medicaid, so unlike Texas and Florida there is no coverage gap below the subsidy floor. Cook County Health runs one of the oldest and largest public hospital systems in the country as the backstop, and Illinois separately covers some immigrants excluded from federal programmes.
Read the full step-by-step guideGetting a US phone number with no credit history
The US has no SIM registration requirement: numbers are not tied to identity documents, so getting connected is trivially easy by international standards. Buy a prepaid SIM or eSIM and it works immediately. The friction is postpaid contracts, which run a credit check you cannot pass on arrival — prepaid avoids it and usually costs less.
Read the full step-by-step guideA constitutionally flat 4.95% — and very high property tax
Illinois taxes income at a flat 4.95%, and the state constitution requires the rate to be flat — a 2020 referendum to allow a graduated tax was rejected, so this is unusually durable. Chicago adds no city income tax, unlike New York or Philadelphia. Where Illinois takes its money instead is property tax, among the highest effective rates in the country, and a 10.25% city sales tax.
Read the full step-by-step guideEach guide has verified costs, timelines, required documents, and the non-obvious gotchas — sourced from official government pages. Last verified August 2026.
Essential English phrases
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What to know before you go
Illinois does not recognise the International Driving Permit
CriticalMany countries' guidance tells you to get an IDP before moving. Illinois explicitly does not recognise it, and it will not help you here — the state recommends carrying one only so your home licence is translated into English. You get 90 days on a valid foreign licence, then you need an Illinois one, and you must surrender every out-of-state licence and ID you hold before Illinois will issue.
A flat 4.95% state tax and no city income tax
CriticalIllinois taxes income at a single flat rate regardless of what you earn — the state constitution requires a flat tax, and a 2020 attempt to change it was rejected at referendum. Chicago levies no city income tax, unlike New York or Philadelphia. For a high earner this is one of the better big-city tax positions in America; for a low earner it is worse than a progressive system would be.
Property tax is the sting, and Cook County reassessments move fast
CriticalIllinois has some of the highest effective property tax rates in the country, and Cook County reassesses on a three-year cycle that can move a bill sharply in a single year. If you rent, it reaches you through the rent. If you buy, look up the property's actual tax history on the Cook County Assessor's site — not an estimate — before you make an offer.
Apply for your Social Security number about ten days after arriving
CriticalSSA verifies your status against DHS records that lag entry by one to two weeks, so an immediate visit usually wastes the trip. Only work-authorised people qualify; everyone else files IRS Form W-7 for an ITIN. The card is free.
Winter is the real thing and it lasts
ImportantJanuary and February regularly sit below -10°C with wind off the lake making it feel far worse, and snow can arrive from November through March. This is not the mild cold of a European winter — it requires an actual coat, boots with grip, and a mental adjustment. The compensation is that Chicago summers are genuinely excellent and the city lives outdoors for four months.
You probably do not need a car
ImportantChicago has the second-largest rail transit system in the US, an almost perfectly flat grid, and a numbered street system that makes navigation trivial once you learn it. Between the L, the buses and the lakefront trail, large numbers of residents go without a car — which given winter parking, dibs and Cook County vehicle costs is a sensible choice.
Top industries & employers
Finance & derivatives trading
CME Group, Citadel, Jump Trading, DRW, Northern Trust
Chicago invented modern derivatives trading and remains the world centre for futures and options — a deeply quantitative employer base, and a distinct culture from New York's.
Consulting & professional services
McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte, Grant Thornton, Kirkland & Ellis
An unusually deep professional services market for the city's size, anchored by the Booth and Kellogg business schools.
Logistics & transportation
Union Pacific, BNSF, United Airlines, Boeing, Archer Daniels Midland
Chicago is the freight rail interchange of North America — most transcontinental cargo passes through here, and the industry underneath that is enormous.
Healthcare & medical research
Northwestern Medicine, Rush, University of Chicago Medicine, Abbott, AbbVie
The academic medical centres and the pharmaceutical companies in the northern suburbs together form one of the region's largest employment blocks.
Technology
Google, Salesforce, Grubhub, Tempus, Cameo, Braintree
A real if smaller tech scene weighted to fintech, health data and logistics software, with Google's Fulton Market campus anchoring the west side.
Manufacturing & food
Caterpillar, Mondelez, Kraft Heinz, Conagra, Boeing
The industrial base that built the city is diminished but still substantial, and the packaged food industry keeps several headquarters here.
Where to go in Chicago
The Art Institute of Chicago
Culture · Grant Park
One of the great encyclopedic museums, with the strongest Impressionist collection outside Paris and the Thorne miniature rooms.
Local tip: Illinois residents get discounted admission and free evenings on some weekdays — bring proof of address. Go straight to the Modern Wing and work backwards to avoid the entrance crush.
The Lakefront Trail
Nature · The whole eastern edge
18 miles of continuous path along Lake Michigan, separated into pedestrian and cycling lanes, with beaches the whole way.
Local tip: The stretch from Promontory Point south is the quiet half and has the best skyline view in the city. Chicago's lakefront is public for its entire length by law — a decision made in the 19th century that defines the place.
The Chicago Riverwalk & architecture boat tour
Landmark · Downtown
A walkway along the main branch of the river, and the boat tour that is genuinely the best introduction to the city.
Local tip: Take the Chicago Architecture Center's tour rather than a cheaper competitor — the docents are trained and it shows. Book ahead in summer.
Pilsen
Neighborhood · Lower West Side
Historically Czech, now the heart of Mexican Chicago — murals, the National Museum of Mexican Art, and 18th Street.
Local tip: The museum is free and one of the best of its kind in the country. Come on a Sunday and eat along 18th Street; Carnitas Uruapan is the institution.
Garfield Park Conservatory
Nature · West Side
Two acres of glasshouse from 1908, one of the largest conservatories in the United States, and free.
Local tip: In February, walking into the Palm House at -12°C outside is the single best thing you can do in a Chicago winter. Take the Green Line; the station is at the door.
The Palmer House Hilton lobby & the Chicago Pedway
Hidden gemLandmark · The Loop
A gilded 1925 ceiling above a hotel lobby, connected to 40 blocks of underground walkway threading beneath downtown.
Local tip: The Pedway is a genuine winter secret — you can cross much of the Loop underground without a coat, and almost no visitor knows it exists. Maps are posted but patchy; the city publishes one.
Emergency numbers in Chicago
Compare Chicago with…
Side-by-side cost of living, language, climate and careers — to help you choose.