Loading listings
Evanston, IL is Chicago's first North Shore suburb, a lakefront city that runs largely on Northwestern University. The campus stretches right along Lake Michigan, and student life spills into downtown Evanston around the Davis Street hub, where shops, restaurants, and CTA and Metra stations sit a few blocks apart. You've got beaches and the lakefront on one side, leafy residential streets on the other, and a walkable core that feels like a real city rather than a campus bubble. Public parks, the lake, and a steady run of civic events and festivals fill the calendar, and when you want the full big-city fix, downtown Chicago is a quick train ride south.
Sits closest to campus, quiet and residential with the lakefront nearby and a premium attached.
Around Davis Street, the most connected spot, walkable to transit and nightlife but in higher demand.
Along the Main-Dempster corridor, a mix of older buildings and newer construction with solid Purple Line access and gentler numbers.
Here's what you need to know about getting around Evanston.
The CTA Purple Line runs straight through Evanston with stops at Davis, Foster, Noyes, Central, Main, and Dempster, connecting you to the rest of the 'L' and downtown Chicago. Metra's Union Pacific North line adds a faster express option into the city. Northwestern runs its own intercampus shuttles. Most students lean on the train and the shuttles rather than keeping a car.
Evanston is genuinely walkable, and most Northwestern students live close enough to walk or bike to class. The flat, grid-like streets make biking easy in the warmer months. The downtown core feels like a real city you can navigate on foot. Between the lakefront and the compact grid, walking and biking cover most daily trips.
A car is more hassle than help here, with tight street parking and permit zones, so most students skip it and lean on the train and their feet. Street parking in Evanston is limited and tightly regulated. Those who keep a car often need a residential permit. For most, the Purple Line and walking beat the parking headache.
Common questions from students searching for housing.
Evanston runs on the higher side for the suburbs. Studios average around $1,500 a month and one-bedrooms near $1,800, with two-bedrooms often $2,400 and up. Splitting a larger unit with roommates is how most students bring the per-person number down.
Browse student housing near each Evanston-area university.