Florida vs Illinois

Head-to-head homesteading comparison across taxes, land, climate, laws, safety & more

Florida

Rank #14

Overall Winner

Overall Score

68.3

Category Wins

6/10

Illinois

Rank #42

Overall Score

60.8

Category Wins

3/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

0.83%

Property Tax

2.07%

101

Cost of Living

93.4

$4,200

Farm Land $/Acre

$9,600

365 days

Growing Season

210 days

65"

Annual Rainfall

48"

5/10

Soil Quality

10/10

7/10

Safety (Rural)

7/10

8/10

Gun Friendly

3/10

4.8 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.2 hrs

87%

Broadband

90%

Florida Edges Out Illinois Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 68.3 vs 60.8, Florida comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 6 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Florida offers cheaper farmland at $4,200/acre vs $9,600/acre. Florida has a longer growing season (365 vs 210 days). Florida has lower property taxes (0.83% vs 2.07%).

Scroll down to the full comparison table for a deep dive into every metric, or use our ranking tool to weight these factors by what matters most to you.

Full Data Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of selected states across homesteading metrics
Data Point	Florida FL	Illinois IL
Taxes & Cost
	No	Yes
	—	4.95%
	7.5%	8.82%
	0.83%	2.07%
	101	93.4
Land & Building
	$4,200	$9,600
	Yes (Statewide)	Yes (Statewide)
	Varies	Varies
Climate & Growing
	8a-11b	5a-7a
	365	210
	65"	48"
	5	10
	6	3
	5	6
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Unrestricted
	4.8	4.2
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Low	Low
	8	3
	Strong	Strong
	Yes (Farm Sales Only)	No
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	533	425
	55%	35%
Demographics & Community
	398.3	225.7
	10%	12%
	87%	90%
Business
	#4	#36
	$125/yr	$150/yr
	3%	4.5%

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