Photo: Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

🇺🇸 Estados Unidos

Chicago

The most affordable big American city: architecture, Lake Michigan as an urban beach, a serious food scene and rents at half of New York.

5.9Zabel scoreHow we score →

€2,200-3,200/monthFibre 1 Gbps, $50-75/monthContinental, -8-28 °C, famous wind

Score breakdown

Cost of living

5.0

The cheapest big US city

Weight 25%

Internet & work

9.0

Excellent fibre

Weight 15%

Safety

5.0

Very uneven by area

Weight 15%

Nomad community

7.0

Growing tech scene

Weight 15%

Weather

4.0

Extreme winters

Weight 10%

Paperwork & visa

4.0

No nomad visa

Weight 20%

What it really costs

Prices checked on the ground by Zabelers. Each line shows when it was last verified.

Central studio

1.800 $/mes

Loop/River North, portal average

2026-09 · Zillow

Coffee

4,75 $

Specialty cafés

2026-09 · Cartas en barra

Local meal

16 $

Personal deep dish or diner

2026-09 · Cartas en barra

Monthly transport

75 $

Unlimited monthly pass

2026-09 · CTA

Coworking month

320 $

Hot desk, average

2026-09 · Webs de espacios

Where to live

Logan Square

Hipster con bulevares históricos

Good for: Creative scene

The catch: Fast gentrification

Wicker Park

Música, tiendas y brunch

Good for: Social life

The catch: Weekend noise

Lincoln Park

Residencial junto al zoo gratis

Good for: Calm

The catch: High prices

West Loop

Ex-industrial, ahora foodie

Good for: Tech workers

The catch: The priciest

Where to work

Coworkings

1871El hub tech más famoso del Medio Oeste
Near-daily events and the city's most active founder community.

Cafés with wifi

Intelligentsia Millennium ParkEl original de 1995
Good wifi and park views; arrive before 9am for a table.

Time zone: CST (UTC-6), CDT in summer

What living here is really like

Editorial synthesis of public experiences

What residents keep repeating

Síntesis editorial · 2026 roundup

Best part:: Nomads say it packs the full big-city deal (museums, food, the lake) at half the coastal price, and complain about the brutal winter and the unsafe patches on the south and west sides.
Worst part:: Summer on the Lakefront and the free festivals make up for any January.

Sources: Reddit r/chicago · Numbeo coste de vida

Day to day

Internet: Fast, cheap fibre; good 5G
Safety: Uneven: north side safe, caution south and west
Healthcare: No public healthcare: private insurance essential ($200-500/month)
SIM / eSIM: Mint Mobile or T-Mobile SIM from $25/month
Best season: May to October; January-February is extreme
Community: Growing tech scene around 1871; welcoming community

Living here legally

Visa

90-day ESTA (Spanish nationals); work requires a visa

Check your visa →

Tax

Federal + Illinois taxes (flat 4.95 %); reasonable for the US

Flights & connections

From Spain €400-600 return with one stop

Lisbon vs. similar cities

City	Zabel score	Monthly budget	In short
Nueva York	5.9	3.500-5.000 €/mes	Twice the price, more networking
Toronto	6.5	2.400-3.300 €/mes	Similar price, safer

Transparency

Last checked: 2026-09-22

Official sources

Prices are checked against the dated sources shown. Editorial experience summaries cite their public sources; verified Zabeler accounts are identified separately. Official procedures always take precedence.