Property tax in Cook County, Illinois

By Brent Chudoba, editor Updated September 23, 2026

The median property tax bill in Cook County, Illinois is $6,191 a year, which is about 1.91% of the county's median home value of $324,500. That effective rate is higher than the typical Illinois county (1.81%) and higher than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.

Estimate the property tax on a home in Cook County

Enter a home's market value to estimate its annual property tax using Cook County's own assessment rules. This is an estimate; for the exact bill, use the county's official tools linked below.

Home market value

Estimated property tax: $5,885 / year

How Cook County gets to that number
Assessed value (10% of market, then a 3.0355x equalizer)	$98,502
Less homestead exemption	-$10,000
Taxable value	$88,502
Tax rate applied	6.65%

For your exact bill, Cook County publishes the authoritative tools: the Cook County Assessor's Office - Fritz Kaegi (current officeholder as of Aug. 2026; he lost the March 17, 2026 Democratic primary to Pat Hynes and his term runs through the Nov. 2026 general election/transition, after which Hynes is favored to take office in December 2026 as the Democratic nominee in this heavily Democratic county).

Assessment ratio, exemption, and rate from Cook County's certified high-confidence sources, reviewed 2026-08-30. Millage varies by taxing district and exemptions vary by owner, so treat this as a close estimate, not the exact bill.

Property tax in Cook County at a glance

Cook County, Illinois property tax (Census ACS, reviewed September 23, 2026)
Measure	Value
Median annual property tax	$6,191
Median home value	$324,500
Effective tax rate	1.91%
Typical Illinois county rate	1.81%
National median county rate	0.81%

Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.

How does Cook County compare in Illinois?

Among Illinois's 102 counties, Cook County has the 41st highest effective property-tax rate: 40 rank higher and 61 rank lower. That is near the middle for Illinois. Nationally, it ranks 112th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Illinois county ranked.

How much do homeowners in Cook County actually pay?

The median is only the middle bill. Across Cook County's 1,212,570 owner-occupied homes, 76.9% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 84.8% pay at least $2,000, and 3.1% pay under $800. Another 4.3% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.

Annual property tax paid by Cook County homeowners (Census ACS 2020-2024)
Annual bill	Homes	Share
Under $800	38,095	3.1%
$800 to $1,499	52,850	4.4%
$1,500 to $1,999	40,385	3.3%
$2,000 to $2,999	96,090	7.9%
$3,000 or more	932,612	76.9%
No property tax paid	52,538	4.3%

Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $6,502 and owners without one pay $5,638. Owners who have paid off a home have usually held it longer, and in states that cap how fast an existing owner's assessment can rise, long-held homes carry lower assessed values. Census table B25103.

How does the Cook County property tax bill compare with local incomes?

The median property tax bill of $6,191 is about 5.7% of the median income of Cook County homeowner households, $108,804 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 57.7% of Cook County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.

Have property taxes gone up in Cook County?

Yes. The median bill went from $5,168 in 2015-2019 to $6,191 in 2020-2024, a 19.8% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 31.6%, from $246,600 to $324,500. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.

Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.

Property tax in counties next to Cook County

Cook County borders 8 counties, 3 of them across the state line.

Cook County and its neighbors, highest effective rate first (Census ACS 2020-2024)
County	Effective rate	Median bill	Median home value
Lake County, IL	2.58%	$8,923	$345,700
McHenry County, IL	2.36%	$7,274	$308,100
Kane County, IL	2.26%	$7,382	$327,000
Will County, IL	2.24%	$7,173	$319,600
DuPage County, IL	2.05%	$8,007	$391,400
Cook County, IL (this county)	1.91%	$6,191	$324,500
Berrien County, MI	1.08%	$2,429	$224,300
Lake County, IN	0.92%	$2,112	$230,600
Porter County, IN	0.83%	$2,326	$281,500

How is a home assessed in Cook County?

Illinois assesses homes at 33.33% of market value in every county, Cook County included. How Illinois assesses and reappraises homes.

Is there a homestead exemption in Cook County?

Yes. Illinois's General Homestead Exemption is $6,000 of equalized assessed value in most counties, $8,000 in counties next to Cook, and $10,000 in Cook County. That is the Illinois rule, and it applies in Cook County. Illinois's exemptions and relief programs in full.

When are property taxes due in Cook County?

Two installments by default, the first due June 1 and the second September 1, or the date on the bill if later. Cook County and counties using accelerated billing follow different schedules, and the county collector sets the actual dates.

Illinois splits the bill into 2 installments. That is the Illinois rule. Cook County issues and collects the bill, so the dates printed on your statement are the ones that bind you.

How to appeal your Cook County property assessment

You contest the assessed value with the County Board of Review, then the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board. The filing deadline is typically 30 days after the Board of Review's decision. That is the Illinois rule; Cook County sets the exact dates and forms. The Illinois appeal process step by step.

Illinois rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Illinois page.

Work out your own numbers

Sources

Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Cook County, Illinois: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.