Illinois vs Maine

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

Illinois

Rank #42

Overall Score

60.8

Category Wins

5/10

Maine

Rank #9

Overall Winner

Overall Score

69.9

Category Wins

4/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

2.07%

Property Tax

1.24%

93.4

Cost of Living

108.4

$9,600

Farm Land $/Acre

$3,200

210 days

Growing Season

160 days

48"

Annual Rainfall

48"

10/10

Soil Quality

5/10

7/10

Safety (Rural)

10/10

3/10

Gun Friendly

8/10

4.2 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4 hrs

90%

Broadband

80%

Maine Edges Out Illinois Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 69.9 vs 60.8, Maine comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 5 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Maine offers cheaper farmland at $3,200/acre vs $9,600/acre. Illinois has a longer growing season (210 vs 160 days). Maine has lower property taxes (1.24% 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	Illinois IL	Maine ME
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	Yes
	4.95%	7.15%
	8.82%	5.5%
	2.07%	1.24%
	93.4	108.4
Land & Building
	$9,600	$3,200
	Yes (Statewide)	Partial
	Varies	Varies
Climate & Growing
	5a-7a	3b-6a
	210	160
	48"	48"
	10	5
	3	2
	6	1
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Unrestricted
	4.2	4
	Yes	Yes
Laws & Freedom
	Low	Medium
	3	8
	Strong	Strong
	No	Yes (Retail Sales)
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	425	112
	35%	25%
Demographics & Community
	225.7	44.2
	12%	61%
	90%	80%
Business
	#36	#38
	$150/yr	$175/yr
	4.5%	3%

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