State
Land Area
45.0 sq mi
Density
4,329.7/sq mi
2020 Growth Rate
-0.73%
Growth Since 2010
-1.53%
Rank in State
Rank in Country
Aurora is a city located in Illinois. With a 2020 population of 194,873, it is the 2nd largest city in Illinois (after Chicago) and the 132nd largest city in the United States. Aurora is currently declining at a rate of -0.73% annually and its population has decreased by -1.53% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 197,899 in 2010. Aurora reached it's highest population of 200,799 in 2016. Spanning over 46 miles, Aurora has a population density of 4,330 people per square mile.
The average household income in Aurora is $94,667 with a poverty rate of 11.40%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to $1,228 per month, and the median house value is $184,400. The median age in Aurora is 33.9 years, 32.8 years for males, and 35.1 years for females. For every 100 females there are 99.4 males.
Aurora is a city in Illinois that is located outside of the Chicago metropolitan area. The city stretches across four counties: DuPage, Kendall, Kane and Will. The city in the early 2000s was ranked as one of the fastest-growing in the US.
Throughout the years, Aurora has seen steady population growth. Its population from 1850 to 1860 grew by over 400%. While this was the highest recorded rate, the city has seen continuous growth through every 10-year census. The city hit the 100,000 milestone during the 1990s before almost doubling by the time of the 2010 census. Since the last census, the city has seen a population growth of 1.6%. Based on its historical growth as well as the new developments springing up in and around the city, it’s almost certain that Aurora will continue to exhibit steady growth to hit its next population milestone.
Aurora’s history dates back to 1834 when it was first settled. It was not officially incorporated until 1845 when it was designated as a village. In 1857, Aurora was incorporated as a city. Aurora was initially divided into two parts: East Aurora and West Aurora. Upon its incorporation in 1857, the two regions merged to create one city. The city’s industry was based around factories and the railroad, which was one of the largest employers until the 1960s. It was because of the heavy industries in the city that lured in immigrants from all over Europe, including but not limited to German, French and Italian inhabitants.
The city has always been one that has been progressive in many different areas including women, education, and religion. Also notable is that Aurora was one of the first US cities to deploy an electric street light system in the 1880s. This earned Aurora the nickname, “City of Lights.”
The city’s economy was based around manufacturing until the railroad shops closed, which led to the closure and relocation of other factories. This, in turn, led to an unemployment rate that climbed to 16% during the 1980s. Further development of the city also was a contributing factor to the decline of other areas of the city, which in turn led to heightened crime rates and gang violence. One good thing that did come out of this dark period was that the city was becoming very ethnically and culturally diverse. During the late 1980s, the city began to make a comeback. More businesses opened and development spread following the construction of the Hollywood Casino in the early 1990s. Development continued through the 1990s, especially in rural areas, and the population of Aurora continued to grow.
Today, the city is thriving and has a very diverse population of over 200,000 inhabitants. The downtown area is being revitalized while other new developments continue to emerge throughout the city and its outskirts to accommodate future growth.
According to the most recent ACS, the racial composition of Aurora was:
Race | Population | Percentage |
---|---|---|
White | 118,936 | 59.49% |
Some Other Race | 34,023 | 17.02% |
Black or African American | 20,176 | 10.09% |
Asian | 17,704 | 8.86% |
Two or More Races | 7,780 | 3.89% |
American Indian and Alaska Native | 1,065 | 0.53% |
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander | 243 | 0.12% |
Type | Count | Average Size | Owned |
---|---|---|---|
All | 63,568 | 3.12 | 64.5 |
Married | 34,336 | 3.8 | 77.1 |
Non Family | 16,993 | 1.31 | 51.3 |
Female | 8,647 | 3.7 | 47.4 |
Male | 3,592 | 3.72 | 47.4 |
3.66
Average Family Size
3.12
Average Household Size
Education Attained | Count | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Less Than 9th Grade | 15,381 | 12.50% |
9th to 12th Grade | 11,499 | 9.35% |
High School Graduate | 26,631 | 21.65% |
Some College | 22,557 | 18.33% |
Associates Degree | 8,564 | 6.96% |
Bachelors Degree | 23,504 | 19.10% |
Graduate Degree | 14,894 | 12.11% |
Name | Total | High School | Bachelors |
---|---|---|---|
White | 51,192 | 48,939 | 23,479 |
Hispanic | 46,460 | 24,754 | 3,747 |
Other Race | 18,188 | 8,281 | 709 |
Black | 12,481 | 10,898 | 2,976 |
Asian | 11,416 | 10,180 | 7,692 |
Multiple Races | 2,674 | 2,400 | 893 |
Native American | 730 | 521 | 73 |
Islander | 88 | 70 |
The highest rate of high school graduation is among white people with a rate of 95.60%.
The highest rate of bachelors degrees is among asian people with a rate of 67.38%.
$39,208
Average Earnings
$46,065
Average Male
$31,581
Average Female
54.10% of Aurora residents speak only English, while 45.90% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 35.78% of the population.
Name | Total | In Poverty | Poverty Rate |
---|---|---|---|
Hispanic | 85,983 | 13,629 | 15.85% |
Other | 33,911 | 6,744 | 19.89% |
White | 70,228 | 4,393 | 6.26% |
Black | 19,968 | 3,217 | 16.11% |
Multiple | 7,655 | 861 | 11.25% |
Asian | 17,671 | 742 | 4.20% |
Native | 1,025 | 70 | 6.83% |
11.40%
Overall Poverty Rate
9.66%
Male Poverty Rate
13.14%
Female Poverty Rate
The race most likely to be in poverty in Aurora is Other, with 19.89% below the poverty level.
The race least likely to be in poverty in Aurora is Asian, with 4.20% below the poverty level.
The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 2.43%. Among those working part-time, it was 13.34%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 19.78%.
49.7%
Overall Marriage Rate
50.9%
Male Marriage Rate
48.5%
Female Marriage Rate
The age group where males are most likely to be married is 45-54, while the female age group most likely to be married is 45-54.
Name | Veterans | % of Total |
---|---|---|
White | 4,041 | 4.61% |
Black | 985 | 6.51% |
Hispanic | 933 | 1.66% |
Other | 293 | 1.33% |
Asian | 145 | 1.14% |
2 or More | 144 | 3.95% |
8.42%
Veteran Poverty Rate
20.49%
Veteran Disability Rate
72.4%
Labor Force Participation
68.6%
Employment Rate
5.2%
Unemployment Rate
Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.
74.60%
Native Born
25.40%
Foreign Born
14.84%
Non Citizen
10.56%
Naturalized
74.60% of Aurora residents were born in the United States, with 58.34% having been born in Illinois. 14.84% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.
Year | Population | Growth | Annual Growth Rate |
---|---|---|---|
2021 | 194,873 | -1,442 | -0.73% |
2020 | 196,315 | -1,442 | -0.73% |
2019 | 197,757 | -1,442 | -0.72% |
2018 | 199,199 | -1,192 | -0.59% |
2017 | 200,391 | -408 | -0.20% |
2016 | 200,799 | 484 | 0.24% |
2015 | 200,315 | 126 | 0.06% |
2014 | 200,189 | 386 | 0.19% |
2013 | 199,803 | 155 | 0.08% |
2012 | 199,648 | 498 | 0.25% |
2011 | 199,150 | 943 | 0.48% |
2010 | 198,207 | 55,217 | 3.32% |
2000 | 142,990 | 43,409 | 3.68% |
1990 | 99,581 | 18,288 | 2.05% |
1980 | 81,293 | 6,319 | 0.81% |
1970 | 74,974 | 11,259 | 1.64% |
1960 | 63,715 | 13,139 | 2.34% |
1950 | 50,576 | 3,406 | 0.70% |
1940 | 47,170 | 581 | 0.12% |
1930 | 46,589 | 10,192 | 2.50% |
1920 | 36,397 | 6,590 | 2.02% |
1910 | 29,807 | 5,660 | 2.13% |
1900 | 24,147 | 4,459 | 2.06% |
1890 | 19,688 | 7,815 | 5.19% |
1880 | 11,873 | 711 | 0.62% |
1870 | 11,162 | 5,151 | 6.38% |
1860 | 6,011 | 0.00% |