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Best Urban Planning Schools Near Champaign, IL (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Champaign, Illinois is home to about 88,822 residents. Median household income is $57,544 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 53.6% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Champaign-Urbana, IL metro area, the top-earning urban planning-related role is Managers, All Other at a median $126,110 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Closest Urban Planning Schools to Champaign
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer urban planning programs near Champaign, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Champaign city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.
No school data available.
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Illinois schools on the Illinois urban planning page.
Urban Planning Wages Near Champaign
Champaign is part of the Champaign-Urbana, IL metro area (BLS area code 16580). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Illinois statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Urban and Regional Planners
$81,840
Champaign-Urbana, IL
$88,285
Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health
$65,360
Champaign-Urbana, IL
$70,507
Surveyors
$75,980
IL statewide
$81,963
Geographers
$92,640
IL statewide
$99,935
Social and Community Service Managers
$78,910
Champaign-Urbana, IL
$85,124
Management Analysts
$98,050
Champaign-Urbana, IL
$105,771
Cartographers and Photogrammetrists
$54,680
IL statewide
$58,986
Managers, All Other
$126,110
Champaign-Urbana, IL
$136,041
Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.
Champaign at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
88,822
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$57,544
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
53.6%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
92.7 (below U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Champaign-Area Cities With Urban Planning Programs
What are the highest-paying urban planning roles near Champaign?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying urban planning-related roles near Champaign are: Managers, All Other ($126,110), Management Analysts ($98,050), Geographers ($92,640). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Illinois statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Urbana instead of Champaign?
Urbana, IL is 4.0 miles from Champaign and has its own set of local urban planning programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Champaign an affordable place to study urban planning?
Champaign’s median household income of $57,544 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Champaign while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Illinois public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.
How do I verify a program is accredited?
Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.
Data verified: September 5, 2026.
Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.