City · Madison County, Illinois

Wood River, Illinois

Wood River is a city in Madison County, Illinois, part of the St. Louis, MO-IL metro area. It has 10,279 residents. Wood River, Illinois has a quality-of-life score of 43 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #8,990 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within Illinois it ranks #412 of 697 cities and towns. It ranks best on home price to income ratio (low), job growth (high) and dentists (high). It ranks worst on preventable hospital stays (high), high ozone days (high) and effective property tax rate (high).

43Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #8,990 of 15,651 cities and towns
Illinois: #412 of 697 in IL
Population: 10,279 (2020-2024)
Land area: 7 mi²
Density: 1,472.7 /mi²
FIPS code: 1783271

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 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.

Safety44#8,665/15,637
Economy46#8,418/15,631
Housing68#4,819/14,977
Health33#10,453/15,609
Healthcare58#6,569/15,650
Environment5#14,727/15,453
Education24#11,835/15,649
Infrastructure58#6,623/15,650
Community59#6,423/15,651
Leisure & amenities71#4,588/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Wood River, Illinois ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Madison 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

Home price to income ratio · low1.7×
96/100Illinois 3.2×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077
Job growth · high2.4%
91/100Illinois 0.0%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataMadison County value
Dentists · high101 /100k
90/100Illinois 86 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMadison County value
Dental care shortage · low0.0
84/100Illinois 4.8United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationMadison County value
Restaurants and bars · high11.2 /10k
83/100Illinois 10.3 /10kUnited States 9.0 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsMadison County value
Distance to an emergency room · low3.8 mi
82/100Illinois 4.0 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesMadison County value

Weaknesses

Preventable hospital stays · high4,027 /100k
8/100Illinois 3,343 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteMadison County value
High ozone days · high7 days
12/100Illinois 5 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMadison County value
Effective property tax rate · high1.75%
13/100Illinois 1.88%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Median Air Quality Index · high49
17/100Illinois 482025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMadison County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · high8.8 µg/m³
18/100Illinois 8.8 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyMadison County value
Bachelor's degree or higher · low15.5%
19/100Illinois 37.8%United States 35.7%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003

Trends

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

Broadband subscriptionsImproving
81.3% (2015-2019) → 90.7% (2020-2024)
+9.5 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
31.1% (2015-2019) → 21.7% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Poverty rateImproving
21.0% (2015-2019) → 13.9% (2020-2024)
−7.1 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 12.3% → 12.1%
Median household incomeImproving
$46,860 (2015-2019) → $62,703 (2020-2024)
+34%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
High school diploma or higherImproving
88.3% (2015-2019) → 94.3% (2020-2024)
+6 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%
New homes permittedWorsening
1.1 /1k (2021) → 0.8 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−27%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k

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, Wood River, Illinois improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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.

Improved4

Poverty−7.1 points21.0% → 13.9%
Inequality−0.0480.435 → 0.388
Household income+34%$46,860 → $62,703
Broadband+9.5 points81.3% → 90.7%

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Wood River, Illinois between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	23.8 min2015-2019	23.7 min2020-2024	−0.2 min	Within the margin of error	49%
Bachelor's degree or higher	14.6%2015-2019	15.5%2020-2024	+1 points	Within the margin of error	34%
Broadband subscriptions	81.3%2015-2019	90.7%2020-2024	+9.5 points	Improved	57%
Child poverty rate	31.1%2015-2019	21.7%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Within the margin of error	81%
Effective property tax rate	1.84%2015-2019	1.75%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	32%
High school diploma or higher	88.3%2015-2019	94.3%2020-2024	+6 points	Within the margin of error	86%
Home price to income ratio	1.7×2015-2019	1.7×2020-2024	−0.0×	Within the margin of error	80%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4352015-2019	0.3882020-2024	−0.048	Improved	83%
Median household income	$46,8602015-2019	$62,7032020-2024	+34%	Improved	63%
Poverty rate	21.0%2015-2019	13.9%2020-2024	−7.1 points	Improved	87%
Rent as share of income	29.8%2015-2019	27.8%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Rent-burdened households	49.6%2015-2019	46.6%2020-2024	−3 points	Within the margin of error	66%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	7.4%2015-2019	7.4%2020-2024	+0 points	Within the margin of error	46%

“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 Wood River, Illinois five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Wood River, 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, Wood River, Illinois itself moved +9 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

10,279 residents (±83)

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

4,573 households (±298)

Wood River, Illinois
Illinois share

Under $25k17%773
$25k–50k19%854
$50k–75k22%1,011

Homes

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

Owners and renters

4,573 households (±298)

Wood River, Illinois
Illinois share

Own67%3,056
Rent33%1,517

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

5,135 workers (±348)

Wood River, Illinois
Illinois share

Drive alone84%4,315
Carpool6.6%†337
Public transit0.3%†

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 St. Louis, MO-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 Madison County, the county holding most of Wood River's residents.

Madison County has 5,659 employer establishments, 215 for every 10,000 residents (0.87× the US rate of 248; 0.84× Illinois's), with 93,915 paid employees at an average annual pay of $53,648. The Census Bureau also counts 17,232 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 5,659; 17,232 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 215; US 248 · Illinois 255
Paid employees: 93,915
Average annual pay: $53,648; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	502	19.1	0.91×About typical	4,735	$74,917	699
Restaurants and other eating places	477	18.1	0.99×About typical	9,820	$20,499	68
Specialty trade contractors	361	13.7	0.89×About typical	3,517	$76,867	997
Limited-service restaurants	239	9.1	1.13×About typical	5,184	$19,290	31
Full-service restaurants	198	7.5	0.98×About typical	4,106	$22,351	32
Religious organizations	198	7.5	1.36×More than typical	1,610	$22,932	—
Offices of other health practitioners	189	7.2	1.18×About typical	970	$62,310	342
Lessors of real estate	186	7.1	0.57×Fewer than typical	582	$41,598	1,614
Automotive repair and maintenance	175	6.6	1.32×More than typical	1,209	$46,381	425
Construction of buildings	163	6.2	0.82×About typical	843	$72,940	436
Legal services	149	5.7	1.05×About typical	1,252	$148,030	165
Services to buildings and dwellings	140	5.3	0.79×Fewer than typical	783	$36,932	991

Rank places for an industry Open Madison County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 263,404 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 $1.3M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Wood River, Illinois: $123 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $1.3M; −18% vs FY2025
Per resident: $123; US $1,994
Sole-source: 1.4%; US 30%
Single offer: 13%; 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

Department of the Army$634.5K50%
Department of the Navy$213.8K17%
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center$186.6K15%
Federal Bureau of Investigation$104.2K8.2%
Transportation Security Administration$45K3.6%
Department of Veterans Affairs$21.6K1.7%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$20.6K1.6%
National Park Service$14.3K1.1%

Top recipients

OLIN WINCHESTER LLC$612.4K48%
KAMEX, INC.$470K37%
MAGRUDER CONSTRUCTION CO INC$121.6K9.6%
YOUNGS GENERAL CONTRACTING INC$31.3K2.5%
LABORATORY GROWTH & PRODUCTIVITY CONSULTING INC$19.7K1.6%

Spending by fiscal year

23.4MFY2017
18.5MFY2018
14.8MFY2019
10.7MFY2020
1.9MFY2021
7.7MFY2022
3.7MFY2023
18.6M

Top industries (NAICS)

Other fabricated metal product manufacturing · 3329$612.4K48%
Utility system construction · 2371$470K37%
Other heavy and civil engineering construction · 2379$157.6K12%
Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments manufacturing · 3345$19.7K1.6%
Nonresidential building construction · 2362$7,1260.6%

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Wood River, Illinois

PAVED DITCH, GRAVITY DRAIN INLETS, DISCH$9.2M
MAGRUDER CONSTRUCTION CO INC· Madison County, IL· Construction & real property· Aug 29, 2024 – May 8, 2026· W912P924C0020
WOOD RIVER SEWER SEPARATION PROJECT$9.1M
KAMEX, INC.· Madison County, IL· Construction & real property· Mar 4, 2024 – Jun 10, 2026· W912P924C0009
WOOD RIVER PUMP STATION MODIFICATIONS$1.8M
YOUNGS GENERAL CONTRACTING INC· Madison County, IL· Construction & real property· Jul 9, 2024 – Jun 1, 2026· W912P924C0014
CYTIVA NANOASSEMBLR SPARK

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 Wood River, Illinois, so they do not add up across cities.

Wood River, Illinois's figures are part of those of Madison County, IL ($15M in FY2026), never added to them: 8.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Madison 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.

Wood River, Illinois is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

County

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

Madison County71100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

St. Louis, MO-IL72

Other cities and towns in Madison 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/1783271

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends