Property Tax in McLean County, Illinois
Homeowners in McLean County, Illinois pay a median of $4,503 a year in real estate taxes, on a median home value of $198,300. Those are the Census Bureau's published medians for the county (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023) — the typical bill and the typical home value for owner-occupied households.
What the McLean County numbers mean
Read the two medians together: $4,503 is the middle tax bill among owner-occupied households in McLean County, and $198,300 is the middle home value. Neither figure describes a specific property — together they describe the typical homeowner's situation in the county.
The derived effective rate for McLean County is 2.27% (median tax ÷ median value). Treat it as an estimate for comparison only: it comes from survey medians of different households, not from the county's rate schedule.
The key figures for McLean County
| Measure | McLean County |
|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid per year | $4,503 |
| Median home value | $198,300 |
| Derived effective rate* | 2.27% |
| Equivalent monthly tax | $375 |
| Tax per $100,000 of value (derived) | $2,271 |
| Illustrative tax on a $400,000 home (derived rate) | $9,084 |
For context, the Illinois medians are $5,189 of tax on $250,500 of value, and the US medians are $2,969 on $303,400. *Derived figures are estimates from Census medians, not official rates.
McLean County at a glance
- Median tax rank in Illinois: #12 of 102 counties
- Median home value rank in Illinois: #13 of 102
- Population rank in Illinois: #13 of 102 (170,882 residents)
- Population density rank: #21 of 102 (144 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in Illinois: #1 of 102 (1,183 sq mi, 2.1% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $375; per $1,000 of home value: $2.27
How McLean County compares
Of the 102 Illinois counties with published data, 11 have a higher median property tax bill than McLean County's $4,503, putting the county at #12 in the state. Its bill is about 13% lower than the state median of $5,189 and about 52% higher than the national median of $2,969.
Rates and values pull in opposite directions: an expensive housing market can produce big bills at ordinary rates. Here the derived rate is 2.27%, versus 0.98% derived nationally, and the median home value ranks #13 within Illinois.
Some extra context for McLean County: the median bill works out to about $375 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $2,271 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 170,882 people — the #13 most populous county in Illinois, spread over 1,183 square miles, a density of about 144 people per square mile. Its median home value, $198,300, ranks #13 among the state's 102 counties with data.
Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 166 record a higher median tax bill than McLean County — it sits in the top 5% nationally. The county holds roughly 1.3% of Illinois's people. Its homes are worth less than the state norm (median $198,300 versus $250,500), and a decade at the derived rate of 2.27% adds up to about 22.71% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Pulaski County, medians $668 — $3,835 less than McLean County per year.
Counties nearest McLean County in the Illinois ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe County, IL | $4,523 | $265,600 | 1.70% |
| Boone County, IL | $4,507 | $198,600 | 2.27% |
| Champaign County, IL | $4,245 | $205,100 | 2.07% |
| Woodford County, IL | $4,224 | $193,800 | 2.18% |
McLean County and its population peers
For a like-for-like sense of scale, compare McLean County with its national population peers: the counties nearest to its 170,882 residents, listed in the table below with their own Census medians. Of the 9 counties in that group, McLean County's median bill of $4,503 is #3 of 9.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aiken County, SC | 171,949 | $862 | $199,500 | 0.43% |
| Midland County, TX | 171,496 | $3,697 | $293,000 | 1.26% |
| Winnebago County, WI | 171,357 | $3,573 | $208,600 | 1.71% |
| Davidson County, NC | 171,063 | $1,262 | $200,100 | 0.63% |
| Kent County, RI | 170,658 | $4,903 | $333,900 | 1.47% |
| Kenton County, KY | 169,817 | $2,284 | $227,500 | 1.00% |
| Chittenden County, VT | 168,831 | $6,527 | $404,500 | 1.61% |
| Pueblo County, CO | 168,726 | $1,382 | $271,800 | 0.51% |
The closest population match is Davidson County, North Carolina (171,063 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $1,262 on a median home value of $200,100 — $3,241 more than McLean County pays.
Inside Illinois itself, the counties closest to McLean County in population are Sangamon County (195,217 residents, median tax $3,369 on a median value of $170,300); Peoria County (179,831 residents, median tax $3,416 on a median value of $152,600); Rock Island County (142,995 residents, median tax $3,372 on a median value of $144,700); Kendall County (135,053 residents, median tax $7,556 on a median value of $298,900). Same state, same broad tax framework — yet the median bills still differ, because assessed values and the mix of county, municipal and school-district rates are set locally.
How the tax is worked out
As an illustration of the arithmetic: at McLean County's derived rate of 2.27%, a home valued at $400,000 would carry a tax bill of roughly $9,084 a year. That is only an illustration using the derived rate — a real bill is computed from the property's assessed value, its exemptions, and the combined rates of its specific taxing districts, so it can be higher or lower.
The usual sequence is: the local assessor values the property; exemptions are applied; the taxable value is multiplied by the combined local rates; and the county bills and collects the tax, distributing it to the schools, municipalities and districts that levied it.
Illustrative bills in McLean County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 2.27% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for McLean County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 2.07% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $3,406 | $284 |
| $250,000 | $5,678 | $473 |
| $350,000 | $7,948 | $662 |
| $500,000 | $11,355 | $946 |
| $750,000 | $17,032 | $1,419 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in McLean County
Most successful appeals are won on facts, not arguments. Start with the property record card held by the McLean County assessor: wrong square footage, an extra room, or a missing homestead exemption are common and fixable. Next, line your assessed value up against recent sales of genuinely similar homes nearby. Many disputes end at an informal conversation with the assessor's office; if yours does not, file the formal appeal with the review board named on your notice before its deadline, evidence attached, and keep paying the bill in the meantime so penalties do not build up.
More Illinois counties
Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in McLean County, Illinois?
The median real estate tax paid in McLean County, Illinois is $4,503 per year, on a median home value of $198,300 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in McLean County, Illinois?
The derived effective rate is 2.27% — the median bill ($4,503) expressed as a share of the median home value ($198,300). No authority sets a rate this way; it exists to make counties with different home prices comparable.
How does McLean County compare with the rest of Illinois?
By median taxes paid, McLean County stands at #12 among the 102 Illinois counties the Census publishes figures for. Its $4,503 median bill is about 13% lower than the state median ($5,189), and 11 counties in the state record a higher median.
How are property taxes calculated in McLean County, Illinois?
Three steps produce the bill: an assessment of market value by the local assessor, a reduction for exemptions you qualify for (a homestead exemption is the common one), and multiplication by the combined rates of the county, municipality, school district and any special districts covering the property. The median result in McLean County is $4,503 of tax on a $198,300 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in McLean County, Illinois?
Yes. Request your property record card from the McLean County assessor's office and check it for errors, then compare your assessed value with recent sales of similar homes. If it still looks too high, file a formal appeal with the local review board named on your assessment notice before the deadline printed on the notice — windows are short, often 30 to 90 days.