With the help of the latest census data, no guessing is required.

Remember when you got that census survey in the mail last year, then you forgot about it for a few weeks, but eventually, you sent it in? Yeah, that one!

Photo by Enayet Raheem on Unsplash
Photo by Enayet Raheem on Unsplash
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Well, that information you sent in is now readily available to be used to help evaluate the population. Illinois was one of three states to lose population during the past 10 years, recording 18,124 fewer residents in 2020 than in 2010. The other two states were Mississippi and West Virginia.

Photo by Gabriel Meinert on Unsplash
Photo by Gabriel Meinert on Unsplash
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Some good news about Illinois though, Chicago remains the nation's third-largest city. At least for now.

Photo by Max Bender on Unsplash
Photo by Max Bender on Unsplash
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So we know Chicago is definitely in the top 5 list. But what other Illinois cities have the highest populations? Safe to say Rockford made the list. If we actually look at Rockford specifically, we see -

Rockford's population saw a 2.8% decline in population to 148,655 in 2020 compared to 2010.

But even with that decline, Rockford is still one of the most populated cities. 

So, let's take a look at the most populated cities in Illinois according to the new census data.

Photo by BlackBox on Unsplash
Photo by BlackBox on Unsplash
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According to the Daily Herald -

The top five most populous cities in Illinois are Chicago, Aurora, Joliet, Naperville and Rockford.

Elgin moved up two spots and comes in at #6 this year.

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