Illinois · County property tax · ACS 2024
Knox County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Knox County pays $2,190 a year, an effective rate of 1.96%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,190
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.96%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- +10%
- vs U.S. average
- #36 of 102
- rank in IL
The verdict
Homeowners in Knox County pay a median $2,190 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.96%, more affordable than 3% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,190
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.96%
- Effective rate on median home
- #3039 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +10%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($111,900). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Illinois. Population: 49,046. Owner-occupied homes: 14,852.
The median annual property tax in Knox County is $2,190, which is 59% lower than the Illinois state average and 10% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.96% on a median home value of $111,900. Property taxes represent 3.8% of the median household income in this county.
Knox County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
Knox County's 1.96% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 97% pay more.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Illinois median
Homeowners in Knox County pay a median annual property tax of $2,190, notably higher than the national median and far below the Illinois state median. On a $111,900 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.96% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Illinois counties by effective rate
Knox County ranks #36 of 102 counties in Illinois by effective rate (65% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Knox County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $57,030 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Knox County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
The rate held while the market moved
Knox County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 4.4% down, against a median home value that rose 33.7%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 27.8%, from $1,713 to $2,190.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 28% from $1,713 to $2,190. These ACS medians describe the reported change; they do not identify whether a levy, assessment, home value, or change in the responding households caused it.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 4,768 of 14,852 owner-occupied homes (32.1%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 3.8% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned here.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Knox County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Knox County homeowners, 4,768 of 14,852 owner-occupied homes (32.1%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 13.9% (2,063)
- $800 to $1,499 17.8% (2,646)
- $1,500 to $1,999 12.8% (1,902)
- $2,000 to $2,999 20.0% (2,976)
- $3,000 or more 32.1% (4,768)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
497 homes here (3.3%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Illinois handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Knox County pay a substantially higher bill, 31% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Knox County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Knox County's effective rate is higher than 65% of the 102 counties in Illinois - ranking #36 of 102.
Where Knox County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.96% more affordable than 3% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
Among the highest-taxed counties in the country
At 1.96%, Knox County sits in the top 3% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. That is the rate, not the bill: a high rate on a modest home can still produce a smaller cheque than a low rate on an expensive one, which is why the $2,190 median bill is the number to compare against another county.
Knox County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Knox County | Illinois Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Highest-decile rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.8% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Knox County's PEAK · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Knox County's published figures (PEAK · MID), a $111,900 median home carries a $2,190 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $219 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Illinois.
Knox County rate trail · PEAK
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,190 +7.1% | 1.96% |
| 2023 | $2,044 +6.8% | 1.95% |
| 2022 | $1,914 +5.2% | 1.98% |
| 2021 | $1,820 +6.2% | 2.11% |
| 2020 | $1,713 | 2.05% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Knox County: tax-to-income at 3.8%
Counties near Knox County's effective rate
On effective rate, Knox County sits nearest Schuyler County (NY), Menard County (TX), Ness County (KS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Putnam County (OH), Carroll County (IA), Worth County (MO).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Knox County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 400 of 22,290 returns from Knox County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,480 - 35% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Illinois
Knox County rate FAQs
- How does Knox County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Knox County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.96% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Knox County?
- Knox County, Illinois scores F (24/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is housing pressure at A (1.96×). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Knox County, Illinois?
- The median annual property tax in Knox County is $2,190, an effective rate of 1.96% on a $111,900 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Knox County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Knox County jumped 27.8% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,713 to $2,190, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Knox County?
- Property taxes in Knox County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $57,030 median household income.
What to do with Knox County's PEAK rate
Inside Illinois, Knox County's $2,190 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Illinois overview →
Knox County ranks #36 of 102 Illinois counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Illinois overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Knox County's PEAK effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.96%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,190/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Knox County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Knox County (PEAK · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PEAK MID
Allamakee County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Knox County at $2,190/yr; rate 1.27% vs Knox County 1.96%.
Morrison County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Knox County at $2,190/yr; rate 0.88% vs Knox County 1.96%.
Spencer County, KY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,188/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.66% vs Knox County 1.96%.
Mercer County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,184/yr (near-tied bill ABS $6); rate 1.10% vs Knox County 1.96%.
Illinois county set
State ACS overview for every published Illinois county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Knox County stamps PEAK · MID - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Knox County (PEAK · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.