Funeral services · Small-town market · Illinois
Funeral homes in the Sterling, IL area
The funeral homes in the Sterling, IL area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #152 of 365 scored small-town markets
#3 of 19 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 9
- 3 chain locations (33%)
- Official establishments
- 5
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $3.8M
- On funerals · $163 a household
- Spending per listing
- $419K
- 38% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 3.9
- 86% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,121
- −2.6% since 2020
See the funeral homes around any address in the Sterling area
The site report maps the funeral homes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the Sterling area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
Map listings as of September 2026 show 9 funeral homes in the Sterling area. 3 of them (33%) are chain locations, against 10% across the U.S. That comes to 3.9 for every 10,000 households, 86% above the U.S. rate of 2.1.
Households in the Sterling area spend about $3.8M a year on funerals, or $163 per household, 14% above the U.S. average. That works out to $419K per home, 38% below the U.S. figure of $679K.
In 2023, official counts showed 5 businesses with payroll in the Sterling area classed as funeral homes and funeral services. That is one for every 4,624 households, against one for every 8,510 across the U.S.
Population estimates show the Sterling area declined 2.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Sterling area scores 54 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for funeral homes, ranking #152 of 365 scored small-town markets and #3 of 19 scored small-town markets based in Illinois.
How the Sterling area compares
The same measures for Illinois and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all funerals by the funeral homes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | Sterling area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 3.9 | 2.7 | 2.1 |
| Spending per listing | $419K | $514K | $679K |
| Households per official establishment | 4,624 | 6,779 | 8,510 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −4.2% | −1.7% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on funerals | $163 | $140 | $143 |
| Median household income | $67,500 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 54 | 30 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 5
- Employees, 2023
- 35
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $1.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 93 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as funeral homes and funeral services in the Sterling area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the Sterling area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 54,121−2.6% since 2020
- Households
- 23,120
- Median age
- 43.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 684 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 80
- Median household income
- $67,500+24.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $86,592
- Median home value
- $127,100
- Jobs located here
- 20,819
- Daytime population
- 50,543Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Sterling area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the funeral homes on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Sterling area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardFuneral homes across Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for funeral homes, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Sterling area marked.
Top small-town markets in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Galesburg, IL | 67 | 6 | 2.9 | $559K | −4.1% | #79 of 365 |
| 2Freeport, IL | 64 | 7 | 3.6 | $498K | −3.0% | #93 of 365 |
| Burlington, IA-IL | 64 | 7 | 3.5 | $464K | −2.5% | #95 of 365 |
| 3Sterling, IL | 54 | 9 | 3.9 | $419K | −2.6% | #152 of 365 |
| 4Mount Vernon, IL | 46 | 6 | 4.0 | $370K | −2.3% | #196 of 365 |
| 5Quincy, IL-MO | 46 | 16 | 5.1 | $314K | −2.0% | #202 of 365 |
| 6Lincoln, IL | 42 | 5 | 4.4 | $361K | −2.5% | #224 of 365 |
| 7Dixon, IL | 42 | 8 | 6.0 | $296K | −3.4% | #228 of 365 |
| 8Carbondale, IL | 41 | 8 | 3.5 | $358K | −1.5% | #235 of 365 |
| 9Charleston-Mattoon, IL | 41 | 9 | 4.3 | $328K | −1.0% | #237 of 365 |
Other business types in the Sterling area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
- Funeral homes54
Questions
How many funeral homes are in the Sterling, IL area?
There are 9 funeral homes on map listings in the Sterling area as of September 2026. 3 of them (33%) are chain locations. The listings count funeral homes, mortuaries and cremation services. Official counts show 5 businesses with payroll classed as funeral homes and funeral services in 2023.
How much do households in the Sterling, IL area spend on funerals?
About $3.8M a year, or $163 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 9 funeral homes on map listings, it comes to $419K per home. It is estimated from the incomes of the 23,120 households in the Sterling area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Sterling, IL area compare with the U.S. for funeral homes?
The Sterling area has 3.9 funeral homes per 10,000 households, 86% above the U.S. rate of 2.1. Spending per home is $419K, 38% below the U.S. figure of $679K. At the national ratio of funeral homes to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 6, against 9 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,624 households, against one for every 8,510 across the U.S.
How fast is the Sterling, IL area growing?
Population estimates put the Sterling area at 54,121 people in 2025, down 2.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 23,120 households. Median household income in the Sterling area is $67,500, 16% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.5%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The Sterling area scores 54 for funeral homes (upper middle), #152 of 365 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Sterling area. It maps the funeral homes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for funeral homes · All 56 business types in the Sterling area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Sterling area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the Sterling area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.