Key takeaway: A one-bedroom in Avondale rents for about $1,795 to $1,850 a month in fall 2026, two-bedrooms about $2,100 to $2,200, and the Blue Line stops at Belmont and Addison.
Avondale sits northwest of Logan Square, along the Kennedy Expressway and the North Branch of the river, with Milwaukee Avenue running through it. You get Blue Line access at lower rents than the neighborhoods just south. Its typical one-bedroom, about $1,795 a month, runs about $284 below the citywide typical of $2,079 (Zillow, September 2026), the 27th highest of the 92 areas in our neighborhood comparison.
| Typical one-bedroom | $1,795 a month |
| Typical two-bedroom | $2,190 a month |
| Income for your own one-bedroom | About $71,800 a year |
| L lines | Blue |
| Metra | Milwaukee District North, Union Pacific Northwest nearby |
| Part of the city | Northwest Side |
On this page: Rent · Getting around · Groceries · Parking · Taxes and home prices · Sample budget
Rent by apartment size
| Unit | Zumper (avg., Oct 2026) | RentHop, ZIP 60618 (median, Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,350 | $1,570 |
| 1 bedroom | $1,795 | $1,848 |
| 2 bedrooms | $2,190 | $2,095 |
| 3 bedrooms | $2,975 | $2,950 |
Source: Zumper Avondale rent research, updated October 24, 2026; RentHop 60618, which also covers North Center. Sources differ because they track different listings; see why rent reports disagree.
Getting around
- L: Blue Line at Belmont and Addison. From the City of Chicago’s list of L stops.
- Metra: no station inside Avondale, but three are close, all Zone 2 at $3.75 one way (Metra fares): Healy and Grayland on the Milwaukee District North Line, and Irving Park on the Union Pacific Northwest Line. See Metra fares.
- Buses: #77 Belmont (runs overnight), #76 Diversey, #152 Addison, #56 Milwaukee, #82 Kimball-Homan and #49 Western.
A 30-day CTA pass is $75 (CTA).
Groceries nearby
| Store | Address |
|---|---|
| ALDI | 3320 W. Belmont Ave. |
| Jewel-Osco Elston and Addison | 3570 N. Elston Ave. |
Source: each store’s own location page or locator, checked October 25, 2026. See our Chicago grocery guide.
Parking
If you will have a car, check your block with the City Clerk’s zone lookup before you sign a lease. Adding a residential permit zone to your City Sticker costs $25 to $35 a year, on top of the $105.18 passenger-car sticker; our parking guide covers guest passes, meters and garages.
Property taxes and home prices
Avondale is entirely in Jefferson Township (Jefferson Township). The Assessor’s 2024 report put Avondale median sale prices at $315,000 for a condo, $570,000 for a single-family home and $597,000 for a two-to-six-unit building (Cook County Assessor, 2024 Chicago report). Two-flats and three-flats are common, and rent from the other units can help cover the mortgage. Citywide, the median Chicago homeowner bill for tax year 2025, mailed in August 2026, was $4,597, up 3.2% (Cook County Treasurer). For how bills are set and how to appeal, see our property tax guide.
Avondale cost of living: a sample monthly budget
| Setup | Rent | CTA pass | Income needed at 30% rent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your own one-bedroom | $1,795 | $75 | $71,800 |
| Half of a two-bedroom | $1,095 | $75 | $43,800 |
| Your own two-bedroom | $2,190 | $75 | $87,600 |
Source: our calculation from the Zumper averages above. Income needed is monthly rent times 12, divided by 0.30. For a fuller answer that includes taxes and the rest of your budget, try our Chicago salary calculator, and see Chicago move-in costs for what you’ll pay up front.
Compare every neighborhood side by side in our Chicago neighborhood cost comparison, or work out your own number with our salary calculator. More Northwest Side neighborhood profiles: Albany Park, Belmont Cragin, Bucktown, Dunning, Edison Park, Hermosa, Irving Park, Jefferson Park, Logan Square, Montclare, Norwood Park, O’Hare, Old Irving Park, Portage Park and Sauganash and Forest Glen.
Costs that apply in every neighborhood: property tax bills, closing costs and condo fees, water, sewer and garbage fees, ComEd and Peoples Gas, CTA fares, parking, average salaries by job and our Chicago cost index.
Sources
- Zumper: Avondale rent
- RentHop: 60618 rent
- Healy Metra station
- Metra: Grayland station
- Metra: Irving Park station
- Metra fare table
- Jefferson Township
- City of Chicago: list of L stops
- CTA fares
- City Clerk: City Sticker prices
- City Clerk: residential zone parking
- Cook County Assessor: 2024 Chicago report
- Cook County Treasurer: tax year 2025 analysis