Illinois vs Tennessee

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

Illinois

Rank #42

Overall Score

60.8

Category Wins

2/10

Tennessee

Rank #1

Overall Winner

Overall Score

73.6

Category Wins

8/10

Quick Comparison

Winner highlighted per category

2.07%

Property Tax

0.56%

93.4

Cost of Living

89.7

$9,600

Farm Land $/Acre

$4,500

210 days

Growing Season

230 days

48"

Annual Rainfall

60"

10/10

Soil Quality

7/10

Safety (Rural)

8/10

3/10

Gun Friendly

9/10

4.2 hrs

Solar (PSH)

4.45 hrs

90%

Broadband

85%

Tennessee Edges Out Illinois Overall

With an overall homesteading score of 73.6 vs 60.8, Tennessee comes out ahead in our balanced analysis — winning 8 out of 10 key categories. But the best state for you depends on what matters most.

Key differences: Tennessee offers cheaper farmland at $4,500/acre vs $9,600/acre. Tennessee has a longer growing season (230 vs 210 days). Tennessee has lower property taxes (0.56% 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	Tennessee TN
Taxes & Cost
	Yes	No
	4.95%	—
	8.82%	9.55%
	2.07%	0.56%
	93.4	89.7
Land & Building
	$9,600	$4,500
	Yes (Statewide)	Partial
	Varies	Varies
Climate & Growing
	5a-7a	6a-8a
	210	230
	48"	60"
	10	7
	3	3
	6	5
Water & Energy
	Unrestricted	Unrestricted
	4.2	4.45
	Yes	No
Laws & Freedom
	Low	Low
	3	9
	Strong	Strong
	No	Herd Share Only
	Yes	Yes
Safety & Healthcare
	425	600
	35%	44%
Demographics & Community
	225.7	167.4
	12%	34%
	90%	85%
Business
	#36	#8
	$150/yr	$300/yr
	4.5%	3.5%

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