The No. 1 ‘safest and richest' suburb in the country is in the Chicago area, new list says

The No. 1 "safest and richest" suburb in the nation is in the Chicago area, according to a new ranking. So is No. 2.

The report, from GOBankingRates, analyzed cities across the nation through data points including average household income, total population, total households, cost of living indexes, crime rates and more, editors wrote.

From there, editors ranked the top 30 suburbs to form a list.

Overall, the majority of the suburbs on the ranking were either in New Jersey, Massachusetts or California. But the top five on the list were in the Chicago area, with Cook County villages nabbing the No. 1, No. 2 and No. 5 spots.

Coming in at No. 1 on the list was Western Springs, according to GOBankingRates. The southwestern suburb, nestled between Hinsdale and La Grange, has a population of 13,557 people, the list said, with an average household median income was $276,402, and the average single-family home value was $763,060.

The No. 2 spot on the list belongs to Kenilworth, on the glitzy North Shore of Chicago. According to the list, the average household median income was significantly higher, at $437,822, with an average single-family home value of $1,768,606.

Kenilworth also recently earned a spot on another GOBankingRates report from earlier this year ranking America's "wealthiest suburbs."

Winnetka, a northern suburb next door to Kenilworth, also made the list, at No. 5.

In Winnetka, the average household median income was $458,988, with an average single-family home value of $1,623,361. The Chicago suburb is also home to the movie-famous Home Alone house, which recently sold for more than $5 million.

Wilmette, a North Shore suburb that borders Kenilworth, ranked on the list at No. 17. According to the report, Wilmette's average household median income came in at $273,718, and the average single-family home value was $909,173. Wilmette also landed on GOBankingRates' 2024 report that ranked the country's "wealthiest suburbs."

Only one other Midwestern town ranked on the list: Ottawa Hills in Ohio, which came in at No. 6

The full list of 30 can be found below:

1. Western Springs, Illinois
2. Kenilworth, Illinois
3. Lexington, Massachusetts
4. Winchester, Massachusetts
5. Winnetka, Illinois
6. Ottawa Hills, Ohio
7. Ridgewood, New Jersey
8. Wellesley, Massachusetts
9. Westfield, New Jersey
10. Ross, California
11. Glen Ridge, New Jersey
12. Haddonfield, New Jersey
13. Summit, New Jersey
14. Chatham, New Jersey
15. University Park, Texas
16. Sammamish, Washington
17. Wilmette, Illinois
18. Vienna, Virginia
19. Needham Massachusetts
20. Mill Valley, California
21. Newton, Massachusetts
22. Hopkinton, Massachusetts
23. Lafayette, California
24. Hingham, Massachusetts
25. Cupertino, California
26. Greenwich, Connecticut
27. Los Altos, California
28. Kensington, California
29. Bellaire, Texas
30. Los Gatos, California

The full report from GOBankingRates can be found here.