Aurora is a city located in DuPage County, Kane County, Kendall County, and Will County Illinois. Aurora has a 2023 population of 177,108. Aurora is currently declining at a rate of -0.6% annually and its population has decreased by -1.8% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 180,355 in 2020.
The average household income in Aurora is $102,873 with a poverty rate of 10.31%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to - per month, and the median house value is -. The median age in Aurora is 35.2 years, 33.6 years for males, and 36.3 years for females.
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:
White
Two or more races
Other race
Black or African American
Asian
Native American
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
Household Type | Count | Average Size | Owner | Renter |
---|---|---|---|---|
All | 61,003 | 2.98 | 66.7 | 33.3 |
Married | 31,876 | 3.69 | 79.2 | 20.8 |
Non Family | 16,227 | 1.26 | 54.4 | 45.6 |
Female | 9,221 | 3.29 | 49.8 | 50.2 |
Male | 3,679 | 3.63 | 55.2 | 44.8 |
3.48
Average Family Size
2.98
Average Household Size
66.7%
Rate of Home Ownership
Married
Male
Female
NonFamily
owner
renter
Only English
Spanish
Other Indo-European Languages
Asian and Pacific Island Languages
Other Languages
54.6% of Aurora residents speak only English, while 45.4% speak other languages. The non-English language spoken by the largest group is Spanish, which is spoken by 33.74% of the population.
rate
10.31%
Overall Poverty Rate
8.88%
Male Poverty Rate
11.74%
Female Poverty Rate
The race most likely to be in poverty in Aurora is Other, with 15.94% below the poverty level.
The race least likely to be in poverty in Aurora is Asian, with 6.16% below the poverty level.
The poverty rate among those that worked full-time for the past 12 months was 2.5%. Among those working part-time, it was 12.93%, and for those that did not work, the poverty rate was 18.01%.
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated
NeverMarried
49.4%
Overall Marriage Rate
51.0%
Male Marriage Rate
47.9%
Female Marriage Rate
male
female
The age group where males are most likely to be married is 55-64, while the female age group most likely to be married is 35-44.
Married
Widowed
Divorced
Separated
NeverMarried
Less Than 9th Grade
High School Graduate
Some College
Bachelors or Greater
8.13%
Veteran Poverty Rate
23.24%
Veteran Disability Rate
LaborForceParticipation
72.7%
Labor Force Participation
68.5%
Employment Rate
5.7%
Unemployment Rate
LaborForceParticipation
LaborForceParticipation
Europe
Asia
Africa
Oceania
Latin America
North America
Non citizens include legal permanent residents (green card holders), international students, temporary workers, humanitarian migrants, and illegal immigrants.
Europe
Asia
Africa
Oceania
Latin America
North America
58.02%
Born in Aurora
74.98%
Native Born
26.19%
Foreign Born
14.48%
Non Citizen
11.71%
Naturalized
74.98% of Aurora residents were born in the United States, with 58.02% having been born in Illinois. 14.48% of residents are not US citizens. Of those not born in the United States, the largest percentage are from Latin America.
Year | Population | Growth | Growth Rate |
---|---|---|---|
1860 | 6,011 | -164,777 | 2% |
1870 | 11,162 | 5,151 | 6.38% |
1880 | 11,873 | 711 | 0.62% |
1890 | 19,688 | 7,815 | 5.19% |
1900 | 24,147 | 4,459 | 2.06% |
1910 | 29,807 | 5,660 | 2.13% |
1920 | 36,397 | 6,590 | 2.02% |
1930 | 46,589 | 10,192 | 2.5% |
1940 | 47,170 | 581 | 0.12% |
1950 | 50,576 | 3,406 | 0.7% |
1960 | 63,715 | 13,139 | 2.34% |
1970 | 74,974 | 11,259 | 1.64% |
1980 | 81,293 | 6,319 | 0.81% |
1990 | 99,581 | 18,288 | 2.05% |
2000 | 142,990 | 43,409 | 3.68% |
2010 | 197,899 | ||
2011 | 196,163 | -1,736 | -0.88% |
2012 | 194,427 | -1,736 | -0.88% |
2013 | 192,691 | -1,736 | -0.89% |
2014 | 190,955 | -1,736 | -0.9% |
2015 | 189,219 | -1,736 | -0.91% |
2016 | 187,483 | -1,736 | -0.92% |
2017 | 185,747 | -1,736 | -0.93% |
2018 | 184,011 | -1,736 | -0.93% |
2019 | 182,275 | -1,736 | -0.94% |
2020 | 180,355 | -1,920 | -1.05% |
2021 | 179,266 | -1,089 | -0.6% |
2022 | 178,184 | -1,082 | -0.6% |
2023 | 177,108 | -1,076 | -0.6% |
2024 | 176,039 | -1,069 | -0.6% |
2025 | 174,976 | -1,063 | -0.6% |
2026 | 173,919 | -1,057 | -0.6% |
2027 | 172,869 | -1,050 | -0.6% |
2028 | 171,825 | -1,044 | -0.6% |
2029 | 170,788 | -1,037 | -0.6% |