Property tax in Macon County, Illinois
In Macon County, the property tax bill comes from the Macon County Treasurer. Every due date for the 2025 bill has passed, and the county had not posted the next cycle's dates when we checked. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Macon County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Macon County, Illinois is $2,696 a year, which is about 2.12% of the county's median home value of $127,300. 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.
Who sends the property tax bill in Macon County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Macon County Treasurer. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Macon County Supervisor of Assessments (township assessors set the initial values), which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
The county treasurer collects for every taxing district on one bill, including the City of Decatur, school districts, townships, parks and libraries, so there is no separate city bill. Questions about a home's assessed value go to the township assessor first; exemptions are handled by the Supervisor of Assessments, and a missing exemption should be raised with that office right away. New owners should file a change of address with the treasurer by March 15 and can ask for a duplicate bill; not receiving a bill does not excuse late penalties. Escrowed owners can have the bill sent straight to the mortgage company on written request. Online payments go through a payment vendor's site linked from the treasurer's page, which has its own help line.
When are property taxes due in Macon County?
Every due date for the 2025 (payable in 2026) bill has passed, and Macon County had not posted the next cycle's dates when we checked on September 23, 2026. If that bill is still unpaid, the late-payment rules below apply to it. Counties usually repeat the schedule, but confirm the new dates on your next bill. For the 2025 (payable in 2026) bill, Macon County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due June 18, 2026 and the last September 1, 2026. State law adds a penalty of 1.5% a month, or part of a month, starting the day after each installment's due date, so even one day late costs the full 1.5%. A payment sent by mail counts as on time if it is postmarked on or before the due date. After the second installment, unpaid taxes get a $10 cost for the certified delinquent notice and newspaper publication, the owner's name is published, and the unpaid taxes are offered at the county's annual tax sale.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First installment | June 18, 2026 (passed) | Illinois taxes are billed a year behind: the bills mailed in 2026 are for the 2025 tax year. Bills are mailed in May each year and the first installment is due 30 days after mailing, so this date moves each year. June 18, 2026 was a Thursday. |
| Second installment | September 1, 2026 (passed) | Due September 1 each year, or the first working day after if September 1 falls on a weekend or Labor Day. September 1, 2026 was a Tuesday. There is one bill a year with two payment coupons; no separate bill is mailed for the second installment. |
From Macon County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. The county had not posted a calendar labeled for this cycle when we checked, so these dates come from state law and the county's standing schedule; the date on your bill is the one that binds you.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Macon County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Macon County's average effective rate of 2.12% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $2,699 / year
Property tax in Macon County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $2,696 |
| Median home value | $127,300 |
| Effective tax rate | 2.12% |
| 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 Macon County compare in Illinois?
Among Illinois's 102 counties, Macon County has the 18th highest effective property-tax rate: 17 rank higher and 84 rank lower. That is on the higher side for Illinois. Nationally, it ranks 59th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Illinois county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Macon County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Macon County's 30,493 owner-occupied homes, 42.2% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 62% pay at least $2,000, and 12.5% pay under $800. Another 3.6% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 3,816 | 12.5% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 3,875 | 12.7% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 2,808 | 9.2% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 6,039 | 19.8% |
| $3,000 or more | 12,864 | 42.2% |
| No property tax paid | 1,091 | 3.6% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,923 and owners without one pay $2,354. 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 Macon County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $2,696 is about 3.4% of the median income of Macon County homeowner households, $79,312 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 70.2% of Macon 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 Macon County?
Yes. The median bill went from $2,191 in 2015-2019 to $2,696 in 2020-2024, a 23% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 29.4%, from $98,400 to $127,300. 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 Macon County
Macon County borders 7 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Macon County, IL (this county) | 2.12% | $2,696 | $127,300 |
| Sangamon County, IL | 1.99% | $3,512 | $176,300 |
| Piatt County, IL | 1.81% | $3,265 | $180,600 |
| Moultrie County, IL | 1.8% | $2,414 | $134,000 |
| De Witt County, IL | 1.78% | $2,322 | $130,300 |
| Logan County, IL | 1.77% | $2,385 | $134,400 |
| Christian County, IL | 1.64% | $1,891 | $115,500 |
| Shelby County, IL | 1.5% | $2,063 | $137,100 |
How is a home assessed in Macon County?
Illinois assesses homes at 33.33% of market value in every county, Macon County included. How Illinois assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Macon 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 Macon County. Illinois's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Macon County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Illinois ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Macon County property assessment
In Macon County you appeal to the Macon County Board of Review. The deadline: Within 30 calendar days of the date assessments are published in the local newspaper; by state law, a late appeal cannot be accepted. For 2025 assessments (the bills paid in 2026) the publication date was September 27, 2025 and the deadline October 27, 2025. The county had not yet posted the publication date for 2026 assessments. A decision applies to the tax year appealed, which is billed the following year. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Illinois's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Illinois rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Illinois page.
Work out your own numbers
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How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Macon County's tax rate to hand.
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Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
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Illinois income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Illinois actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Macon County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Macon 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.