--- title: The 10 Best Places to Live in the Midwest description: Some new spots and familiar faces line our new list of Best Places to Live in the Midwest. authors: - name: Adam Hardy role: Lead Data Reporter url: https://money.com/author/adam-hardy/ bio: Adam Hardy is a lead data journalist at Money, where he frequently reports on financial barriers that affect low-income Americans. Adam’s work has also appeared in Business Insider, Forbes, Nasdaq, The Penny Hoarder, Yahoo! Finance and more than a dozen local and regional newspapers. education: University of South Florida, BA, Magazine Journalism at_money_since: 2021 articles: 501 covers: - Housing - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - The Penny Hoarder - Forbes Advisor - Creative Loafing - The New York Times - The Washington Post - Bloomberg - Harvard Law School - The Federal Register - National Consumer Law Center - CBS News - Becker's Hospital Review - Business Insider - Mother Jones - The Week - Fortune - The Philadelphia Inquirer - National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NAFSAA) - Education Advisory Board (EAB) - The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS) - This Morning with Gordon Deal - Empower - Reddit social: - https://www.x.com/hardyjournalism - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hardyjournalism/ editors: - name: Samantha Sharf role: Editor url: https://money.com/author/samantha-sharf/ bio: Samantha Sharf is Money's real estate editor. She previously wrote about amazing homes and billion-dollar real estate entrepreneurs for Forbes. at_money_since: 2020 articles: 34 covers: - Housing - Economy and Politics - Lifestyle - Mortgages - Personal Finance social: - https://twitter.com/samsharf - https://linkedin.com/in/samanthasharf/ former_staff: true published: '2023-01-09T18:55:32.000Z' modified: '2024-04-17T13:02:14.000Z' section: Housing tags: - Best Places to Live word_count: 476 canonical: https://money.com/best-places-to-live-in-the-midwest/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![People eating at an outdoor restaurant in Rogers Park neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois](https://img.money.com/2023/01/BPL22-Midwest-Rogers-Park-Chicago.jpg) *Rogers Park (Chicago), Illinois* Presented by ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/16756/5163d535-82a0-4087-80f2-8627251387ea.png) Becoming a homeowner is closer than you think with AmeriSave Mortgage. Don't wait any longer, start your journey today! [Go to AmeriSave.com](https://money.com/pr/s0033bdcef33?ap_referrer=%2Fbest-places-to-live-in-the-midwest%2F) It's no secret that Chicago is one of the most beloved cities in the country. But in such a massive place, much can fly under the radar. So we're honing in on one neighborhood that we believe exemplifies everything that makes Chicago great: Rogers Park. The underdog neighborhood [ranked No. 5](https://money.com/best-places-to-live/rogers-park-chicago-illinois/) on Money’s overall [Best Places to Live](https://money.com/best-places-to-live/) list — and is Money’s pick for the best place to live in the Midwest. For this [regional list](https://money.com/best-places-to-live-in-every-region/), we focused on places with populations of at least 50,000 that were located in 12 Midwestern states as defined by the [U.S. Census](https://www2.census.gov/geo/pdfs/maps-data/maps/reference/us_regdiv.pdf). Those states include: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin. We also limited the rankings to one place per county and two places per state. As with our core [Best Places to Live](https://money.com/best-places-to-live/?ref=/best-big-cities/) ranking, we collected approximately 350 pieces of data on each Midwestern place and grouped that information into nine primary ranking categories such as amenities, cost of living, diversity, economic opportunity and more. (See our [full Best Places methodology](https://money.com/best-places-to-live/methodology/?ref=/best-big-cities/) for more details.) ## Your dream home is within reach with Lendingtree ### Get a low Mortgage Rate on a home you’ll love. Lendingtree Mortgage can guide you in your home-buying journey. All it takes is one click on your state to get the ball rolling. [VIEW RATES](https://money.com/pr/ye5863ca5374?ap_referrer=%2Fbest-places-to-live-in-the-midwest%2F) Not all products are eligible. All loans are subject to credit approval. [Additional](https://www.amerisave.com/lock-shop/) terms & conditions apply. Rogers Park, often referred to as Chicago's best kept secret, stands out in particular for its diversity and affordability — along with all the perks that come with being located within the nation's third largest city. Home to about 55,000 residents, Rogers Park is Chicago's northernmost neighborhood and is located along the shore of Lake Michigan. The area, which boasts 10 lakefront beaches spread across more than a mile of public access shoreline, is known as the [most diverse neighborhood in Chicago](https://chicago.suntimes.com/2022/5/27/23138736/rogers-park-chicago-neighborhoods-census-diversity), which itself is one of the most diverse cities in the country. Residents often cite the neighborhood’s multiculturalism as the foundation of what makes it a welcoming and unique place to live. (Its walkability, access to public transit, and lakeshore vistas only enhance the experience.) *Chicago* magazine [once declared](https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/a-whole-world-on-one-chicago-street/) that there’s “a whole world” along Devon Avenue in West Rogers Park, in an area known as Little India. Here you can find a mosque, a temple, a synagogue or a church within walking distance. Heading East toward Lake Michigan, you’re sure to pass by Indian, Nepalese, Pakistani, Israeli, Cuban or Chinese restaurants serving up a variety of vegetarian, vegan, kosher and halal dishes. Perhaps the best perk of Rogers Park is that it’s one of the most affordable places in Chicago for housing. According to Realtor.com, the median home in the area sold for $170,000 versus Chicago’s $305,000. ## The 10 best places to live in the Midwest 1. Rogers Park (Chicago), Illinois 2. Ann Arbor, Michigan 3. Naperville, Illinois 4. Carmel, Indiana 5. Overland Park, Kansas 6. Madison, Wisconsin 7. Woodbury, Minnesota 8. Eagan, Minnesota 9. Troy, Michigan 10. St. Peters, Missouri ## Take the first step to becoming a homeowner today ### Get a Mortgage Rate that works for you. Lendingtree Mortgage can help you get started with just a few clicks. Get started now by clicking below. [VIEW RATES](https://money.com/pr/w098d1d27f91?ap_referrer=%2Fbest-places-to-live-in-the-midwest%2F) Not all products are eligible. All loans are subject to credit approval. 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