City · Marshall County, Illinois

Lacon, Illinois

Lacon is a city in Marshall County, Illinois, part of the Peoria, IL metro area. It has 1,916 residents. Lacon, Illinois has a quality-of-life score of 30 out of 100 (low), ranking #10,914 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Illinois it ranks #544 of 697 cities and towns. It ranks best on public libraries (high), grocery stores (high) and restaurants and bars (high). It ranks worst on new business applications (low), mental health providers (low) and distance to an emergency room (high).

30Low

Quality-of-life score: #10,914 of 15,651 cities and towns
Illinois: #544 of 697 in IL
Population: 1,916 (2020-2024)
Land area: 2 mi²
Density: 1,171.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 1740559

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 72 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety83#2,616/15,637
Economy24#11,921/15,631
Housing56#6,644/14,977
Health37#9,895/15,609
Healthcare19#12,697/15,650
Environment18#12,638/15,453
Education29#11,050/15,649
Infrastructure2#15,369/15,650
Community56#6,921/15,651
Leisure & amenities75#3,905/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Lacon, Illinois ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Marshall County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Public libraries · high3.5 /10k
97/100Illinois 0.6 /10kUnited States 0.5 /10k2024Institute of Museum and Library ServicesMarshall County value
Grocery stores · high3.5 /10k
96/100Illinois 1.9 /10kUnited States 1.7 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMarshall County value
Restaurants and bars · high14.8 /10k
95/100Illinois 10.3 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMarshall County value
Homicide rate · low0.0 /100k
94/100Illinois 6.2 /100kUnited States 4.8 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataMarshall County value
Home price to income ratio · low1.9×
93/100Illinois 3.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Violent crime rate · low76 /100k
91/100Illinois 251 /100kUnited States 328 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationCovers part of the area: some reporting agencies or member counties have no figureMarshall County value

Weaknesses

New business applications · low5.8 /1k
0/100Illinois 14.9 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauMarshall County value
Mental health providers · low26 /100k
2/100Illinois 355 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarshall County value
Distance to an emergency room · high21.0 mi
2/100Illinois 4.0 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMarshall County value
Access to exercise opportunities · low33.0%
3/100Illinois 90.6%United States 84.5%2022 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarshall County value
Primary care physicians · low17 /100k
3/100Illinois 82 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMarshall County value
Job growth · low-4.0%
4/100Illinois 0.0%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataMarshall County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
1,759 (2015-2019) → 1,916 (2020-2024)
+8.9%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsWorsening
33.8% (2015-2019) → 53.1% (2020-2024)
+19 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
69.4% (2015-2019) → 83.1% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Rent as share of incomeWorsening
21.6% (2015-2019) → 35.0% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
Child poverty rateImproving
25.2% (2015-2019) → 13.9% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Average commute timeWorsening
22.4 min (2015-2019) → 33.0 min (2020-2024)
+48%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Lacon, Illinois improved on 3 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 2. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved3

Uninsured−5 points8.5% → 3.5%
Broadband+14 points69.4% → 83.1%
Household income+20%$52,448 → $63,162

Declined2

Commute+10.7 min22.4 min → 33.0 min
Bachelor's+−5.7 points15.3% → 9.7%

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Lacon, Illinois between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	22.4 min2015-2019	33.0 min2020-2024	+10.7 min	Declined	2%
Bachelor's degree or higher	15.3%2015-2019	9.7%2020-2024	−5.7 points	Declined	6%
Broadband subscriptions	69.4%2015-2019	83.1%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	75%
Effective property tax rate	2.00%2015-2019	2.00%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	15%
High school diploma or higher	94.4%2015-2019	90.4%2020-2024	−3.9 points	Within the margin of error	8%
Home price to income ratio	1.6×2015-2019	1.9×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	62%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4672015-2019	0.4062020-2024	−0.060	Within the margin of error	88%
Median household income	$52,4482015-2019	$63,1622020-2024	+20%	Improved	34%
Poverty rate	14.8%2015-2019	14.8%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	44%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	21.6%2015-2019	35.0%2020-2024	+13 points	Within the margin of error	6%
Rent-burdened households	33.8%2015-2019	53.1%2020-2024	+19 points	Within the margin of error	9%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	8.5%2015-2019	3.5%2020-2024	−5 points	Improved	87%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Lacon, Illinois five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Lacon, Illinois in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Lacon, Illinois itself moved −20.3 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,916 residents (±227)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

799 households (±83)

Lacon, Illinois
Illinois share

Under $25k22%†177
$25k–50k17%†138
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

799 households (±83)

Lacon, Illinois
Illinois share

Own72%573
Rent28%226

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

796 workers (±100)

Lacon, Illinois
Illinois share

Drive alone89%708
Carpool2.9%†23
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Peoria, IL

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Marshall County, the county holding most of Lacon's residents.

Marshall County has 235 employer establishments, 201 for every 10,000 residents (0.81× the US rate of 248; 0.79× Illinois's), with 2,900 paid employees at an average annual pay of $52,499. The Census Bureau also counts 634 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 235; 634 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 201; US 248 · Illinois 255
Paid employees: 2,900
Average annual pay: $52,499; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Marshall County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Restaurants and other eating places	22	18.9	1.03×About typical	245	$14,645	5
Specialty trade contractors	19	16.3	1.05×About typical	80	$63,725	56
Religious organizations	17	14.6	2.63×More than typical	50	$9,660	—
Truck transportation	15	12.9	2.54×More than typical	96	$49,438	24
Full-service restaurants	12	10.3	1.34×More than typical	114	$12,649	4
Gasoline stations	10	8.6	2.64×More than typical	119	$27,529	—
Ambulatory health care services	9	7.7	0.37×Too few to compare	76	$29,053	14
Banks and credit unions	8	6.9	2.12×Too few to compare	57	$58,298	—
Building equipment contractors	8	6.9	1.14×Too few to compare	42	$51,881	8
Limited-service restaurants	8	6.9	0.86×Too few to compare	126	$16,103	—
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	7	6	4.95×Too few to compare	18	$13,444	6
Insurance agencies and brokerages	6	5.1	1.17×Too few to compare	17	$54,000	8

Rank places for an industry Open Marshall County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 11,663 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Lacon, Illinois: $0 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $0
Per resident: $0; US $1,994
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

12.9FY2019

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Lacon, Illinois, so they do not add up across cities.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Lacon is mostly in Marshall County.

See federal money in Marshall County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Lacon, Illinois is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Darin LaHoodR-IL-16 · 100% of residentsWith party 98%Missed 5.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Marshall County53100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Peoria, IL71

Other cities and towns in Marshall County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/1740559

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends