City guide Chicago
- Internet Speed Avg. 150-300 Mbps (Xfinity, AT&T Fiber) A citywide speed table did not load (Ookla and the Xfinity plan page returned 403). Census…
- Language Classes Instituto Cervantes, Alliance Française Alliance Francaise de Chicago, mapped at 54 West Chicago Avenue, has taught French since…
- Laundry Services Bubble (App-based), Tide Cleaners ($2-4 per lb) Tide Cleaners offers wash-and-fold, dry cleaning and pickup. A per-pound price was not on…
- Libraries & Study Spots Harold Washington Library Center Harold Washington Library Center, 400 South State Street. Branch hours did not render (the…
- Local Brewery Goose Island Brewhouse, Revolution Brewing, Half Acre Revolution Brewing, 3350 North Kedzie Avenue in Avondale. Half Acre's Balmoral taproom is…
- Local Heritage The Chicago Flag (4 red stars, 3 white stripes) The Chicago flag is a white field with two light blue horizontal bars and four red…
- Local Markets Green City Market, Randolph Street Market Green City Market runs farmers' markets in Lincoln Park and the West Loop. Chicago French…
- Main Train/Transit Hub Union Station (Amtrak/Metra), Ogilvie Transportation Center Chicago Union Station, 255 South Canal Street, for Amtrak and Metra. It closes between 1am…
- Museums & Art Venues Art Institute of Chicago, Field Museum, MCA Chicago Art Institute of Chicago, 111 South Michigan Avenue: adult general admission USD 32…
- Music Scene Green Mill (Jazz), Kingston Mines (Blues), Empty Bottle (Indie) Green Mill Cocktail Lounge, mapped at 4802 North Broadway, lists late Friday and Saturday…
- Must-See Landmarks Millennium Park (The Bean), Willis Tower Skydeck Millennium Park, 201 East Randolph Street, is free and open daily 6am-11pm. Willis Tower…
- National Parks Nearby Indiana Dunes National Park (1 hour drive) Indiana Dunes National Park, on the Indiana shore of Lake Michigan, with about 15 miles of…
- Nearby Nature Escapes The 606 Trail, Humboldt Park, Morton Arboretum The 606 is the elevated Bloomingdale Trail, linking four neighborhood parks. The Lakefront…
- Networking Events Chicago TechEvents, 1871 (Startups), Built In Chicago WeWork's Chicago page says the community team hosts networking and lunch-and-learns…
- Parcel Delivery Service UPS Store, FedEx Office, USPS The UPS Store, USPS and FedEx are the parcel services. None of the homepages that loaded…
- Popular International Cuisine Ghiaia (Italian), Au Cheval (Burgers), Duck Duck Goat (Chinese) Duck Duck Goat, 857 West Fulton Market, for Chinese-American food from Stephanie Izard…
- Population 2,746,000 2,731,585 on 1 July 2025 (Census estimate). The 1 April 2020 census count was 2,746,388.
- Power 120V, 60Hz, 🔌 Type A/B sockets 120 V at 60 Hz for ordinary outlets, with 120/240 V in homes. Plug types A and B (NEMA…
- Property Tax Yes, Cook County rate (Approx. 2.1% of value) Yes. Cook County's tax year 2025 bills, payable in 2026, put the median Chicago homeowner…
- Property Transaction Tax 0.75% State/County + Chicago transfer tax ($3.75 per $500) Chicago charges USD 5.25 per USD 500 of the price (1.05%): the buyer generally pays USD…
- Public Transport Passes CTA Ventra Card ($5/day, $20/7-day, $75/30-day) CTA and Pace, on a Ventra card or contactless tap. The chart still dated 20 February 2023…
- Regional Travel Metra Trains (suburbs), Amtrak (Milwaukee, Detroit, St. Louis) Metra commuter rail uses Union Station and Ogilvie and lists lines such as BNSF, the Union…
- Religious Sites Holy Name Cathedral, Bahá'í House of Worship (Wilmette) Holy Name Cathedral, at the northeast corner of State and Superior, is the Catholic…
- SIM Card T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon (eSIM via Airalo or Holafly recommended) Visible is USD 25 a month, taxes included, for unlimited data on Verizon, with eSIM…
- Scenic Viewpoints Adler Planetarium Skyline Walk, 360 CHICAGO 360 CHICAGO, 875 North Michigan Avenue, is 1,030 feet up, open 9am-11pm, with tickets from…
- Short Term Rentals Sonder, Blueground (approx. $2,500 - $4,500/month) A stay of 31 days or fewer needs a city shared-housing registration. Houses and buildings…
- Social Events for Expats Internations Chicago, Meetup.com (Chicago Digital Nomads Group) InterNations Chicago reports 21,877 members and newcomer events. The page also points…
- Street Art Wicker Park Murals, Pilsen Mural Walk none
- Street Food Stalls Pilsen (Tacos), French Market (Metra Market) Chicago French Market, 131 North Clinton Street, a year-round indoor market by Union…
- Studio Purchase Price (City Center) Approx. $5,500 per m² (e.g., 40 m² = $220,000) Redfin does not publish a studio price. For Downtown Chicago, the all-home median in the…
- Studio Purchase Price (Outside City) Approx. $3,200 per m² (e.g., 40 m² = $128,000) Redfin does not publish a studio price. Oak Park, just west of the city, had an all-home…
- Table Tennis Spots SPIN Chicago (River North) SPIN Chicago, 344 North State Street in River North, phone 773-635-9999, a ping-pong…
- Tap Water Drinkable (sourced from Lake Michigan) Safe to drink. The city takes about 750 million gallons a day from Lake Michigan cribs…
- Tax System Taxation of worldwide income for US citizens/residents US citizens are taxed on worldwide income. A non-citizen who is present 31 days this year…
- Tech Repair Services Apple Michigan Avenue, Chicago Computer Classes Apple Michigan Avenue, 401 North Michigan Avenue, phone 312-529-9500. On 22 October 2026…
- Theater Venues The Second City (Comedy), Steppenwolf, Chicago Theatre The Chicago Theatre, mapped at 175 North State Street, lists Tedeschi Trucks Band on 23…
- Top International Airline United Airlines, American Airlines (O'Hare Hub) United Airlines is headquartered in Chicago and flies a long-haul network. O'Hare (ORD)…
- Top Regional Airline Southwest Airlines (Midway International Airport) Chicago Midway (MDW), 5700 South Cicero Avenue, about 12 miles from the Loop, is the…
- VAT Sales Tax: 10.25% in Chicago No federal VAT. Chicago's combined general-merchandise sales tax is 10.25% in the IDOR…
- Vegan/Vegetarian Options The Chicago Diner (Logan Square), Bloom Plant Based Kitchen The Chicago Diner, 3411 North Halsted Street in Lake View. The restaurant site returned an…
full rewrite from the generated sheet. Population 2,746,000 to 2,731,585 (1 July 2025). Internet left as the Census broadband share after Ookla and Xfinity returned 403. Currency kept at USD with the World Bank rate of 1. Tap water kept drinkable and added the lead-plumbing caveat. Power kept 120 V, types A and B, and dropped the emoji. SIM set to Visible USD 25 and T-Mobile about USD 45 after a USD 50 first month. Banking limited to Wise and Chase homepages. Accommodation set to Zumper medians and POST from USD 1,200. Cashless limited to CTA contactless and the cash-bus fare. Short-term rentals set to the shared-housing registration rules. Budget accommodation set to Freehand, 19 East Ohio, with the 20% offer, and HI Chicago without a nightly rate. Coworking set to WeWork at USD 39 a day and USD 289 or USD 339 a month. Cafe set to Sawada, 112 North Green. Networking and social events set to InterNations (21,877 members, about 23 events a month) and WeWork community events. Ride apps kept Uber and Lyft. Divvy day pass USD 18 to USD 19.90, annual USD 143 current and USD 99 new, scooters USD 0.34 a minute. Beach kept North Avenue Beach with the park-district address. Regional airline dropped Southwest and names Midway only. International airline dropped the O'Hare-hub claim and names United's Chicago headquarters and O'Hare. Highway kept the Kennedy as I-190, I-90 and I-94. Transit hub set Union Station to 255 South Canal and kept Ogilvie at 500 West Madison. CTA passes kept USD 5, USD 20 and USD 75 and added the 3-day pass and the O'Hare boarding. Regional travel kept Metra and Amtrak without a sample fare. Hospital kept Northwestern Memorial at 251 East Huron. Yoga set to Zen Yoga Garage, first class free, no drop-in price. Gym set to East Bank Club with no monthly fee. Laundry set to Tide Cleaners with no per-pound price. Food delivery left without a Chicago fee after DoorDash returned 403. Local dish kept Lou Malnati's and Al's Beef. Vegan set to the Chicago Diner at 3411 North Halsted. Dessert set to Molly's at 1150 South Wabash. Shopping set to Aldi and Green City Market. E-commerce kept Amazon without a rendered homepage. Grocery set to Instacart without a Chicago fee. Nightlife set to the West Loop, Logan Square and Kingston Mines. Brewery set to Revolution, Half Acre and Goose Island without a Goose Island street. Wine set to Webster's at 2601 North Milwaukee. Street food set to the French Market at 131 North Clinton. International cuisine set to Duck Duck Goat. Landmarks kept Millennium Park and added 360 CHICAGO from USD 27, with no Skydeck dollar price. Museums kept the Art Institute at USD 32 and the Field and Adler hours without those ticket prices. Historical sites kept Pullman at 610 East 111th and the Water Tower at 806 North Michigan. Religious sites kept Holy Name and the Baha'i House of Worship at 100 Linden, Wilmette. Annual events kept Lollapalooza 2026 and the Jazz Festival. Cultural districts kept Chinatown. Theater kept the Chicago Theatre, Steppenwolf and Second City. Markets kept Green City Market and the French Market. Music kept Green Mill, Kingston Mines and the Empty Bottle. Street Art cleared. Cooking set to the Chopping Block at 4747 North Lincoln with no class price. Galleries set to Monique Meloche through 24 October 2026. Historic buildings set to the Rookery at 209 South LaSalle. Heritage corrected the flag to two blue bars and four red stars. Nature set to The 606, the Lakefront Trail and Morton Arboretum. National parks kept Indiana Dunes and dropped the one-hour drive. Cycling kept the 18-mile Lakefront Trail. Viewpoints set to 360 CHICAGO and Skydeck. Birdwatching kept Montrose Point. Bonfire-Friendly Spots cleared. Parcel kept UPS, USPS and FedEx without a downtown counter. Tech kept Apple at 401 North Michigan. Table tennis kept SPIN at 344 North State. Language set to Alliance Francaise and dropped Instituto Cervantes. Libraries kept Harold Washington at 400 South State. Community kept Old Town School at 4544 North Lincoln. Gaming Lounges cleared. Casino kept Bally's at the Medinah Temple. Purchase prices replaced the per-square-metre guesses with Redfin's USD 383 and USD 294 per square foot, applied to example flats. Corporate tax split the 9.5% state stack from the 21% federal rate. Dividend withholding kept 30%. Tax system kept worldwide taxation and the substantial-presence test. Top bracket kept 37% plus 4.95%. VAT kept Chicago sales tax at 10.25%. CFC kept Subpart F and GILTI. Property tax replaced 2.1% with the median bill of USD 4,597. Transaction tax set the city rate at USD 5.25 per USD 500 plus the state and county stamps. Tourist area kept the Loop and River North. Nomad area kept the West Loop, Logan Square and Wicker Park with the Zumper averages. Nomad tax stayed unattractive: no nomad visa, ESTA or a visa, worldwide tax. Source