North Central College

Naperville, IL

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North Central College - Naperville, IL Area Guide

A historic liberal arts institution in the Chicago suburbs

Private Liberal Arts Suburban Historic Small Cardinals

Established in 1861, North Central College has been a fixture of the academic community in the Chicago suburbs for over 150 years. US News & World Report named North Central as one of the top-ranked regional universities in the Midwest, as well as one of the best colleges for veterans and one of the best value schools. The magnificent historic architecture of the campus forms the backdrop for a top-notch scholarly environment serving around 3,000 students, nearly all of whom are undergraduates.

The fairly compact campus sits just blocks away from the core of Naperville, a small suburban community roughly thirty miles from The Loop in Chicago. The DuPage River runs through the center of town, and the beautiful Riverwalk Park anchors the Downtown Historic District. This part of the city is packed with a superb collective of restaurants, nightlife hotspots, specialty shops, and performance venues, all within a stone’s throw of the North Central campus. The surrounding neighborhoods offer a wide selection of rental houses, apartments, and condos that make it easy to get around on foot, whether you’re heading to class or a night on the town.

Rent Trends

As of April 2026, the average apartment rent in Naperville, IL is $1,786 for a studio, $1,811 for one bedroom, $2,219 for two bedrooms, and $2,944 for three bedrooms. Apartment rent in Naperville has increased by 2.4% in the past year.

  • Studio

  • 566 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $1,786/month

    Average Rent

  • 1 BR

  • 757 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $1,811/month

    Average Rent

  • 2 BR

  • 1,041 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $2,219/month

    Average Rent

  • 3 BR

  • 1,372 sq ft

    Average Sq Ft

  • $2,944/month

    Average Rent

Getting Around

Moderately Walkable

Walkability

60 / 100

Some Public Transit

Transit

50 / 100

Moderately Drivable

Drivability

60 / 100

Moderately Bikeable

Bikeability

60 / 100

Daily Essentials

Supermarket Within a 30 Minute Walk

Groceries

30 / 100

Good Restaurant Variety Nearby

Restaurants

70 / 100

Good Café Variety Nearby

Cafes

60 / 100

Fair Variety of Shops Nearby

Shopping

50 / 100

Recreation

Very Large Amount of Park Space Nearby

Parks

80 / 100

Good Wellness Amenity Variety Nearby

Wellness

60 / 100

Local Vibe

Vibrant Atmosphere at Times

Vibrancy

40 / 100

Fair Nightlife Variety Nearby

Nightlife

40 / 100

Fairly Noisy

Quiet Score

70 / 100

Schools

Mill Street Elementary School

Public

Grades K-5

590 Students

May Watts Elementary School

Public

Grades K-5

563 Students

V Blanche Graham Elementary

Public

Grades K-5

308 Students

Ellsworth Elementary School

Public

Grades K-5

232 Students

Steeple Run Elementary School

Public

Grades K-5

638 Students

Scullen Middle School

Public

Grades 6-8

935 Students

Clifford Crone Middle School

Public

Grades 6-8

838 Students

Gordon Gregory Middle School

Public

Grades 6-8

821 Students

Lincoln Jr High School

Public

Grades 6-8

766 Students

Thayer J Hill Middle School

Public

Grades 6-8

777 Students

Neuqua Valley High School

Public

Grades 9-12

3,156 Students

Naperville North High School

Public

Grades 9-12

2,553 Students

Naperville Central High School

Public

Grades 9-12

2,551 Students

Steps Program

Public

Grades 9-12

95 Students

Gail McKinzie High School

Public

Grades 9-12

Points of Interest

Parks and Recreation

  • DuPage Children's Museum
  • Jurica-Suchy Nature Museum
  • Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve
  • McDowell Grove Forest Preserve
  • Four Lakes Village

Airports

  • Chicago Midway International
  • Chicago O'Hare International

Top Apartments Near North Central College

Houses Near North Central College

Property Management Companies

Methodology

† Our analysis of utilities, groceries, transportation, healthcare, home prices, and other goods and services is sourced from the Cost of Living Index, a respected benchmark published by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) that provides a thorough overview of living expenses across different regions.

Rent data is provided by CoStar Group’s Market Trend reports. As the industry leader in commercial real estate information, analytics, and news, CoStar conducts extensive research to produce and maintain a comprehensive database of commercial real estate information. We combine this data with public record to provide the most up-to-date rental information available.

Consumer goods, services, and home prices are sourced from the Cost of Living Index published by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER). The data on this page is updated quarterly. It was last published in February 2026.

Demographic information comes from Neustar and combines detailed address data with U.S. Census and American Community Survey statistics to produce reliable local estimates.