Auto · Metro area · Illinois
Gas stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for gas stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 52 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #180 of 387 scored metro areas
#3 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois
- Listings
- 3,058
- 2,683 chain locations (88%)
- Official establishments
- 2,262
- +1.6% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $8.5B
- On gasoline and other fuels · $2,332 a household
- Spending per listing
- $2.8M
- 17% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 8.4
- 23% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 9,434,123
- 0.0% since 2020
See the gas stations around any address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
The site report maps the gas stations 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 3,058 gas stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. Chain locations make up 88% of them, against 84% across the U.S. That is 8.4 per 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 10.9.
Household spending on gasoline and other fuels in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area comes to about $8.5B a year: $2,332 per household, 10% below the U.S. average. That is about $2.8M of household spending for each station on map listings, 17% above the U.S. figure of $2.4M.
In 2023, official counts showed 2,262 businesses with payroll in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area classed as gasoline stations, up 1.6% from 2019. That is one for every 1,611 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. Official counts list 131 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 61 SBA-backed loans worth $91.8M have gone to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area.
Population estimates show the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area held about level from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for gas stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is 52 (upper middle), #180 of 387 scored metro areas and #3 of 8 scored metro areas based in Illinois.
How the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area compares
The same measures for Illinois and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all gasoline and other fuels by the gas stations 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 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area | Illinois | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 8.4 | 9.2 | 10.9 |
| Spending per listing | $2.8M | $2.6M | $2.4M |
| Households per official establishment | 1,611 | 1,319 | 1,184 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.6% | +0.4% | −3.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | 0.0% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on gasoline and other fuels | $2,332 | $2,409 | $2,595 |
| Median household income | $90,887 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 52 | 43 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 2,262+1.6% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 17,261
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $503.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 131Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 3,0582,683 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 3,563The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 61
- Amount
- $91.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as gasoline stations in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 9,434,1230.0% since 2020
- Households
- 3,643,783
- Median age
- 39.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 66%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 6,923 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,354
- Median household income
- $90,887
- Average household income
- $125,950
- Median home value
- $323,000
- Jobs located here
- 4,599,202
- Daytime population
- 9,509,530Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the gas stations on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardGas stations across Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Illinois for gas stations, numbered among those based in Illinois (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Illinois
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Champaign-Urbana, IL | 61 | 59 | 6.0 | $3.9M | +1.5% | #118 of 387 |
| 2Springfield, IL | 53 | 58 | 6.4 | $3.9M | −1.2% | #170 of 387 |
| 3Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 52 | 3,058 | 8.4 | $2.8M | 0.0% | #180 of 387 |
| 4Bloomington, IL | 48 | 56 | 8.0 | $3.2M | +0.1% | #207 of 387 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 46 | 1,153 | 9.9 | $2.6M | −0.2% | #221 of 387 |
| Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 39 | 44 | 11.5 | $2.4M | +1.7% | #271 of 387 |
| 5Decatur, IL | 33 | 37 | 8.5 | $2.8M | −4.3% | #302 of 387 |
| 6Peoria, IL | 32 | 176 | 11.4 | $2.3M | −1.3% | #315 of 387 |
| Paducah, KY-IL | 30 | 68 | 16.3 | $1.8M | −1.2% | #324 of 387 |
| 7Kankakee, IL | 27 | 53 | 12.9 | $2.1M | −1.7% | #337 of 387 |
Other business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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
Questions
How many gas stations are in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 3,058 gas stations on map listings as of September 2026. 2,683 of them (88%) are chain locations. The listings count gas stations. Official counts show 2,262 businesses with payroll classed as gasoline stations in 2023, up 1.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 131 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area spend on gasoline and other fuels?
About $8.5B a year, or $2,332 per household. That is 10% below the U.S. average (an index of 90, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 3,058 gas stations on map listings, it comes to $2.8M per station. It is estimated from the incomes of the 3,643,783 households in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area compare with the U.S. for gas stations?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area has 8.4 gas stations per 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 10.9. Spending per station is $2.8M, 17% above the U.S. figure of $2.4M. At the national ratio of gas stations to household spending, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area would have about 3,563, against 3,058 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,611 households, against one for every 1,184 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.6% from 2019 to 2023, against −3.1% for the U.S.
How fast is the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area at 9,434,123 people in 2025, unchanged since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 3,643,783 households. The median household income in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area is $90,887 a year, 13% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area scores 52 for gas stations (upper middle), #180 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. It maps the gas stations 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 gas stations · All 56 business types in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro 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.