Illinois · County property tax · ACS 2024
McDonough County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in McDonough County pays $2,285 a year, an effective rate of 2.13%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,285
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 2.13%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- +15%
- vs U.S. average
- #16 of 102
- rank in IL
The verdict
Homeowners in McDonough County pay a median $2,285 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 2.13%, more affordable than 2% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,285
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 2.13%
- Effective rate on median home
- #3080 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +15%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($107,500). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Illinois. Population: 26,920. Owner-occupied homes: 7,523.
The median annual property tax in McDonough County is $2,285, which is 57% lower than the Illinois state average and 15% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 2.13% on a median home value of $107,500. Property taxes represent 4.3% of the median household income in this county.
McDonough County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
McDonough County's 2.13% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 98% pay more.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Illinois median
Homeowners in McDonough County pay a median annual property tax of $2,285, notably higher than the national median and far below the Illinois state median. On a $107,500 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 2.13% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Illinois counties by effective rate
McDonough County ranks #16 of 102 counties in Illinois by effective rate (84% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in McDonough County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $52,795 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in McDonough 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
McDonough County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 0.8% down, against a median home value that rose 17.2%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 16.3%, from $1,965 to $2,285.
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
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $1,965 to $2,285, a gain of 16%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 2,582 of 7,523 owner-occupied homes (34.3%) 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.
This is the least forgiving PAIRING in the data, bottom-quartile household income with a top-quartile effective rate, putting the median bill at 4.3% of median household income. Neither figure is remarkable on its own; the combination is, and the ratio above is the only part of it a household actually feels.
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 McDonough County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of McDonough County homeowners, 2,582 of 7,523 owner-occupied homes (34.3%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 16.1% (1,210)
- $800 to $1,499 18.0% (1,351)
- $1,500 to $1,999 8.2% (614)
- $2,000 to $2,999 18.3% (1,379)
- $3,000 or more 34.3% (2,582)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
387 homes here (5.1%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Illinois handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in McDonough County pay about the same bill, a 4% gap.
McDonough County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
McDonough County's effective rate is higher than 84% of the 102 counties in Illinois - ranking #16 of 102.
Where McDonough County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
2.13% more affordable than 2% 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 2.13%, McDonough County sits in the top 2% 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 $2,285 median bill is the number to compare against another county.
McDonough County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | McDonough 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 | 4.3% | - | - |
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.
McDonough County's PEAK · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On McDonough County's published figures (PEAK · MID), a $107,500 median home carries a $2,285 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $229 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Illinois.
McDonough County rate trail · PEAK
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,285 +2.1% | 2.13% |
| 2023 | $2,238 +4.8% | 2.16% |
| 2022 | $2,135 +11.5% | 2.13% |
| 2021 | $1,915 -2.5% | 2.15% |
| 2020 | $1,965 | 2.14% |
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.
McDonough County: tax takes 4.3% of income
Counties near McDonough County's effective rate
On effective rate, McDonough County sits nearest Sullivan County (NH), Putnam County (NY), Herkimer County (NY).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Jackson County (KS), Jefferson Davis County (MS), Lawrence County (IN).
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
McDonough County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 320 of 11,810 returns from McDonough County reported real estate taxes, averaging $5,316 - 44% 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
McDonough County rate FAQs
- How does McDonough County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in McDonough County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 2.13% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for McDonough County?
- McDonough County, Illinois scores F (29/100) 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 (2.04×). 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 McDonough County, Illinois?
- The median annual property tax in McDonough County is $2,285, an effective rate of 2.13% on a $107,500 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in McDonough County?
- Property taxes in McDonough County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $52,795 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in McDonough County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for McDonough County climbed 16.3% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,965 to $2,285, 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 to do with McDonough County's PEAK rate
Inside Illinois, McDonough County's $2,285 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Illinois overview →
McDonough County ranks #16 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 McDonough 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: 2.13%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,285/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with McDonough County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for McDonough County (PEAK · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PEAK MID
Columbia County, PA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,286/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.11% vs McDonough County 2.13%.
Coos County, OR
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,284/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.68% vs McDonough County 2.13%.
Saginaw County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,284/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.49% vs McDonough County 2.13%.
Seward County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,284/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.67% vs McDonough County 2.13%.
Illinois county set
State ACS overview for every published Illinois county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
McDonough 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 McDonough County (PEAK · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.