Cook County Content Marketing for 113 Towns at Once
Cook County has 113 places of 2,500 or more residents, and each asks its own local questions. Our work on content marketing in Cook County: posts shaped by real questions, one service page for each thing you sell and local landing pages for the places you serve, all in plain words. Public Census figures below show how much there is to write about here and how careful its buyers tend to be.
How the score breaks down
The Material and the Readers in Cook County
Local Content Opportunity Index
69.7/ 100
Ranks 280 of 1,822 counties with 20,000 or more residents, 193 of the 400 markets here. Higher scores show more content to cover and more research-minded buyers. Method
Our Local Content Opportunity Index (LCOI) rates each county on a 0 to 100 scale for the material a business has to cover plus how many of its buyers do homework first. The seven research-heavy categories, the number of towns, business growth, income and permits go into it. Cook County scores 69.7, well above the middle of the pack.
Two things stand out in Cook County: 113 places above 2,500 residents, and a population change of -3.6% since 2020. Every tile below sets one number against the other counties we rank. We start from these numbers for content marketing services for Cook County businesses.
- Locations in seven research categories, per 10,000 35.7 Ahead of 90% of counties
- Towns over 2,500 people 113 Higher than 99% of counties
- Residents gained or lost since 2020 -3.6% Below 97% of counties
- How the research-heavy count moved, 2017 to 2022 -2.5% Behind 65% of counties
- Research-heavy locations run by fewer than five 71.2% Higher than 78% of counties
- Employer locations added, all industries, 2017 to 2022 +1,180 Lower than 64% of counties
- What the middle household earns (2023 est.) $80,547 Above 79% of counties
- 2025 housing permits per 10,000 people 10.4 Lower than 80% of counties
Each percentile is the share of the 1,822 ranked counties that score lower than Cook County. Built from: Census population estimates, the 2017 and 2022 County Business Patterns, SAIPE income estimates, Building Permits Survey.
The editor's read
A Writing Plan Built Around Cook County's Numbers
Writing for Cook County means writing for 113 places at once. Chicago holds 52% of the residents, and the rest are spread across 112 other places of 2,500 or more, a spread that puts the county higher than in 99% of counties for its number of towns. Local content has to cover them one at a time.
Two more details shape the plan. The headcount changed -3.6% from the 2020 Census, lower than in 97% of counties. Research-heavy businesses are dense here, 35.7 per 10,000 residents, above 90% of counties. The first pages go to Chicago and Cicero, the places holding the most residents.
For scale, 5,087,072 residents make Cook County the 2nd largest of 3,143 counties, with 134,846 employer locations (265.1 per 1,000 residents) providing 2,441,203 jobs. The median household earns $80,547, more than 85% of counties.
Demand signal
Home Permits in Cook County Are Down From a 2022 Peak of 8,325
Bars count housing units permitted that year. Data from the Census Building Permits Survey, with a same-months comparison for 2026. Approved units are not all built.
After peaking at 8,325 units in 2022, approvals eased to 5,308 in 2025. Through the first eight months of 2026, 3,204 units were approved against 3,884 a year earlier, down 17.5%.
Among trades tied to housing, real estate agents and brokers are the densest here at 2.0x the typical county. Each new household has to choose among them, and plain explanations of what listing agents do, how offers and counteroffers work and what a given price range buys are what that household is looking for.
The field
Counting the Competition for Readers in Cook County
18,148 employer locations ranked by density next to the median county. The right-hand column shows locations with fewer than five staff, the ones with the least time to spare.
Bars show locations per 10,000 residents as a multiple of the median county, with the tick at 1.0x. Source: County Business Patterns, 2017 to 2022, a count of businesses, nothing more. How we count
The busiest category is law offices, with 4,014 locations at 2.7 times the median county's density (down 6.8% since 2017). A buyer looking here wants to understand how long a typical matter takes, how fees are as a rule structured and how a case unfolds from the first call. Dentists follow at 2.0x the typical county.
Real estate agents and brokers grew fastest, up 14.8% since 2017 to 2,478 locations. Only law offices and physicians offices shrank. Small teams are most common among residential remodelers: 2,697 of 2,901 locations have fewer than five employees. Across all seven categories it is 12,918 of 18,148.
Where people live
Cook County Place by Place
The largest places in Cook County: 113 places above 2,500, 79 above 10,000.
| No. | Place | Residents (2023 est.) | Slice of the county | Size next to the largest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago (part) | 2,664,452 | 52% | 100% |
| 2 | Cicero | 81,004 | 2% | 3% |
| 3 | Schaumburg (part) | 75,750 | 1% | 3% |
| 4 | Evanston | 75,070 | 1% | 3% |
| 5 | Arlington Heights | 74,495 | 1% | 3% |
| 6 | Skokie | 64,937 | 1% | 2% |
Residents are Census estimates. A place can be a city, town or census-designated place; cities that cross a county line show only their Cook County part.
55% of residents live in the top three places; the other 45% are spread across smaller towns and unincorporated areas.
Check it against your business
Is It Worth the Fee? Content Marketing Services for Cook County Businesses
A plan's fee is easy to see; the real question is what it has to earn. Type what a customer in your trade is worth in Cook County, how much of it you keep and how many leads buy.
Counting the work
Counting Pages: The Cook County Town Grid
Say a Cook County business has three services to cover and wants a page for each in each of the 113 places above 2,500 residents: a grid of 339 pages. How fast each plan builds the grid is below.
| Plan | Fee | Local pages per month | Months to build the town grid | Assets written over a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver | $1,495 | 25 | 13.6 months | 48 (0.4 per place) |
| Gold | $2,495 | 50 | 6.8 months | 96 (0.8 per place) |
| Platinum | $3,495 | 100 | 3.4 months | 144 (1.3 per place) |
Three services per large place is an assumption. Plan volumes match the pricing page.
Your own services and places will change the grid; months measure build time only. Assets are separate.
Look-alike markets
Comparable Counties for Cook County
The six counties most like Cook County out of 400 markets, compared on six traits. Useful context for content marketing in Cook County.
| Similar county | Index score | Population (2023) | Towns above 2,500 | Median household income | Business locations added since 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County, IL (you are here) | 69.7 | 5,087,072 | 113 | $80,547 | +1,180 |
| Los Angeles County, CA | 81.1 | 9,663,345 | 82 | $86,499 | +28,989 |
| Harris County, TX | 75.1 | 4,835,125 | 27 | $72,348 | +7,661 |
| Allegheny County, PA | 70.8 | 1,224,825 | 50 | $76,488 | +65 |
| Dallas County, TX | 76.7 | 2,606,358 | 25 | $74,352 | +3,839 |
| St. Louis County, MO | 71.7 | 987,059 | 47 | $81,631 | +498 |
| Tarrant County, TX | 79.3 | 2,182,947 | 31 | $80,083 | +4,784 |
Six nearest of our 400 markets by closeness on six traits: size, income, score, towns, growth and research density. Sources as above.
Los Angeles County, CA resembles Cook County most closely (81.1 on the index to 69.7, 82 towns of 2,500+ to 113); Tarrant County, TX is the outlier of the group at 79.3. Similar numbers do not mean similar results.
Fees
Paying for Local Content for Cook County Businesses
Written content is part of the Organic Growth plans; they differ mainly in monthly volume. No setup fee and no contract. Ask our CEO which level makes sense.
Asked about this market
Your Questions on Cook County Content Strategy
How much does Cook County content marketing cost?
Content comes inside the Organic Growth plans: Silver is $1,495 a month for 4 Strategic Content Assets, Gold is $2,495 for 8 and Platinum is $3,495 for 12. There is no setup fee and no contract. Set the fee against what one new customer is worth to you; the calculator above does that arithmetic, and a $80,547 median household income in Cook County is background only.
How much would a year of writing cover in Cook County?
Over a year Silver writes 48 assets, Gold 96 and Platinum 144. Spread Gold's 96 across 113 places and each gets about 0.8. The 339-page town grid needs 14 months on Silver, 7 months on Gold and 4 months on Platinum.
Where in Cook County should the first local pages go?
Start with the biggest audience. Chicago has 2,664,452 residents, 52% of the county, and Cicero adds 81,004, then Schaumburg at 75,750. Then come the smaller towns, bringing forward any town where your own customers are. With 113 places above 2,500, three services each make a grid of 339 pages.
Does business growth change what to write in Cook County?
Employer locations went from 133,666 in 2017 to 134,846 in 2022, up 0.9% and behind 64% of counties. With little turnover, depth and proof of experience count for more than speed.
How does a $80,547 median income shape the writing?
It can. The median household earns $80,547, ahead of 79% of counties, and buyers at that level often compare for longer, so longer guides and detailed comparisons earn their place.
How much of the writing should be for newcomers to Cook County?
Cook County permitted 10.4 homes per 10,000 residents in 2025, behind 80% of counties, and the population has changed -3.6% since 2020. Fewer new households means most readers already live here, so newcomer guides can be a small part of the plan.
What do Cook County's small teams mean for a publishing schedule?
12,918 of 18,148 research-heavy locations have fewer than five employees, 71.2% and ahead of 78% of counties. Teams that small often cannot keep a blog current, so steady publishing is a way to stand out.
Which kind of business has the most rivals in Cook County?
Law offices, with 4,014 locations at 2.7x the typical county's density, down 6.8% since 2017. Dentists are next at 2.0x. Customers of law offices usually want to understand how a case unfolds from the first call, what a first consultation involves and what documents to bring, which is where a first batch of pieces belongs.
Does a score of 69.7 mean results for a Cook County business?
No. A score of 69.7 puts Cook County well above the middle of the pack, and that only describes how much material and how many careful buyers there are. A plan commits you to monthly volume, billed monthly, with no setup fee and no contract.
Around Cook County
Counties Around Cook County
Neighbors of Cook County, with distance, population and score.
- Lake County, IL, 22 miles from Cook County, 708,760 residents, scoring 76.9
- DuPage County, IL, 23 miles from Cook County, 921,213 residents, scoring 79.1
- Lake County, IN, 32 miles from Cook County, 500,598 residents, scoring 63.5
- Will County, IL (35 miles away; 700,728 people; LCOI 77.8)
Start a Conversation
Talk Through Cook County Content Marketing With Our CEO
Tell us what you do and which of Cook County's towns you serve, and we will show what a month of writing would cover. Phone 610-825-4363 or write to hello@getphound.com to arrange a call with our CEO.