Chicago - IL vs San Francisco - CA: 2026 Housing Comparison

What this means for buyers

San Francisco - CA is roughly 215% more expensive than Chicago - IL in typical home value. Chicago - IL sees more listings with price cuts (27.5% vs 21.2%), a sign of softening seller expectations.

Chicago vs San Francisco: what the numbers say

At today's 7.24% average 30-year rate with 20% down, the typical home would cost about $1,939 a month in principal and interest in Chicago and $6,108 in San Francisco, a gap of $4,169 a month.

Typical rent runs $2,163 in Chicago and $3,445 in San Francisco, so the mortgage payment alone is 0.9 times rent in Chicago and 1.8 times rent in San Francisco, before taxes and insurance.

Home prices are 13.7 years of rent in Chicago and 27.1 in San Francisco; the lower ratio in Chicago means buying there is cheaper relative to renting.

Over the last 23 months typical values moved +8.3% in Chicago and -0.6% in San Francisco; over just the last three months the change was +1.5% in Chicago and +1.4% in San Francisco.

Homes sell for 100.5% of list price in Chicago and 106.1% in San Francisco, after 14 and 16 days on the market, with price cuts on 28% and 21% of listings. The signs are mixed: Chicago has more price cuts and sales further below list, while San Francisco has longer time on the market.

The number of homes for sale is up 1% on a year ago in Chicago and down 13% on a year ago in San Francisco.

Payments assume a 30-year fixed loan at the Freddie Mac weekly average rate (2026-10-29), 20% down, principal and interest only. Home values, rents and market figures are Zillow Research metro data.