Commuting in Cook County – by the numbers

Even worse are travel times for super commuters — that unlucky 10% of Americans traveling more than one hour each way to punch a clock.

Stacker compiled statistics about the average commute in Cook County using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Statistics are calculated based on 2020 5-year estimates. Cook County has a longer commute than all of its eight neighboring counties.

Cook County commuting by the numbers

• Average commute: 33.2 minutes
  • 14.2% higher than state average
  • #3 worst commute in the state
• Workers with 1+ hour commute: 14.6%
• Workers who drive to work: 67.7%
• Workers who carpool to work: 7.8%
• Workers who take public transport to work: 17.8%
• Workers who work from home: 7.8%
• Left for work between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.: 13.0%
• Worked outside county of residence: 11.3%

Cook compared to nearby counties

1. Berrien County, MI: 20.2 minutes
2. Porter County, IN: 28.3 minutes
3. Lake County, IN: 29.0 minutes
4. Kane County, IL: 29.2 minutes
5. DuPage County, IL: 29.4 minutes
6. Lake County, IL: 30.4 minutes
7. McHenry County, IL: 32.0 minutes
8. Will County, IL: 33.0 minutes
9. Cook County, IL: 33.2 minutes

Counties with the best commutes in Illinois

1. Crawford County: 16.1 minutes
2. McDonough County: 16.8 minutes
3. Brown County: 16.9 minutes

Counties with the worst commutes in Illinois

1. Calhoun County: 42.6 minutes
2. Kendall County: 33.7 minutes
3. Cook County: 33.2 minutes