Auto · Small-town market · Illinois
Insurance agencies in the Sterling, IL area
How the Sterling, IL area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for insurance agencies: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 15 out of 100: Low
Ranked #514 of 537 scored small-town markets
#11 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois
- Listings
- 43
- 3 chain locations (7%)
- Official establishments
- 30
- −6.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $37.7M
- On vehicle insurance · $1,632 a household
- Spending per listing
- $877K
- 30% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 18.6
- 19% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,121
- −2.6% since 2020
See the insurance agencies around any address in the Sterling area
The site report maps the insurance agencies 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
For insurance agencies, the Sterling area has a Groundwork market score of 15 (low): #514 of 537 scored small-town markets and #11 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Illinois. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
Household spending on vehicle insurance in the Sterling area comes to about $37.7M a year: $1,632 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That is about $877K of household spending for each agency on map listings, 30% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M.
There are 43 insurance agencies on map listings in the Sterling area as of September 2026. Of those, 3 are chain locations, or 7%, against 21% across the U.S. That comes to 18.6 for every 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 15.6.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in the Sterling area was 30 in 2023, down 6.2% from 2019. That is one for every 771 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Sterling area declined 2.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
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 vehicle insurance by the insurance agencies 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 | 18.6 | 18.2 | 15.6 |
| Spending per listing | $877K | $795K | $1.3M |
| Households per official establishment | 771 | 887 | 966 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.2% | −7.0% | −1.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.6% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on vehicle insurance | $1,632 | $1,450 | $1,957 |
| Median household income | $67,500 | $83,390 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 15 | 11 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 30−6.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 89
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $4.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 433 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 30The 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 insurance agencies and brokerages 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 insurance agencies 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 cardInsurance agencies across Illinois
Every Illinois market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Illinois for insurance agencies, numbered among those based in Illinois, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Canton, IL | 27 | 18 | 13.0 | $1.3M | −2.0% | #448 of 537 |
| 2Danville, IL | 26 | 44 | 14.6 | $994K | −3.7% | #458 of 537 |
| 3Ottawa, IL | 25 | 96 | 15.5 | $1.1M | −1.6% | #463 of 537 |
| 4Charleston-Mattoon, IL | 25 | 30 | 14.4 | $997K | −1.0% | #464 of 537 |
| 5Rochelle, IL | 24 | 33 | 15.8 | $1.1M | −0.7% | #470 of 537 |
| 6Macomb, IL | 20 | 17 | 14.3 | $1M | −4.5% | #484 of 537 |
| 7Carbondale, IL | 19 | 43 | 18.7 | $756K | −1.5% | #498 of 537 |
| 8Taylorville, IL | 18 | 24 | 17.7 | $924K | −1.5% | #500 of 537 |
| 9Marion-Herrin, IL | 18 | 62 | 21.4 | $743K | +0.2% | #504 of 537 |
| 10Effingham, IL | 16 | 47 | 25.9 | $696K | −0.9% | #511 of 537 |
| 11Sterling, IL | 15 | 43 | 18.6 | $877K | −2.6% | #514 of 537 |
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
Questions
How many insurance agencies are in the Sterling, IL area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 43 insurance agencies in the Sterling area. 3 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count insurance agencies. Official counts show 30 businesses with payroll classed as insurance agencies and brokerages in 2023, down 6.2% from 2019.
How much do households in the Sterling, IL area spend on vehicle insurance?
About $37.7M a year, or $1,632 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 43 insurance agencies on map listings, it comes to $877K per agency. 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 insurance agencies?
The Sterling area has 18.6 insurance agencies per 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 15.6. Spending per agency is $877K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $1.3M. At the U.S. ratio of insurance agencies to household spending, the Sterling area would have about 30, against 43 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 771 households, against one for every 966 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.2% from 2019 to 2023, against −1.0% for 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 15 for insurance agencies (low), #514 of 537 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 insurance agencies 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 insurance agencies · 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.