Chicago is the third-most populous city in the United States with more than 2.8 million residents. Adjacent to Lake Michigan, the Chicago metropolitan area, commonly referred to as Chicagoland, has a population of more than 9.5 million people. The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce defines it as all of Cook, and DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties.

The Chicago metropolitan area is the third-largest media market in North America (after New York City and Los Angeles). Chicago has the third largest gross metropolitan product in the nation — approximately $440 billion according to 2007 estimates. The city has also been rated as having the most balanced economy in the United States, due to its high level of diversification. Chicago was named the fourth most important business center in the world in the MasterCard Worldwide Centers of Commerce Index. Additionally, the Chicago metropolitan area recorded the greatest number of new or expanded corporate facilities in the United States for six of the past seven years. In 2008, Chicago placed 16th on the UBS list of the world's richest cities.

Chicago is home to eleven Fortune 500 companies, while the metropolitan area hosts an additional 21 Fortune 500 companies. Chicago also hosts 12 Fortune Global 500 companies and 17 Financial Times 500 companies. The city claims one Dow 30 company as well: aerospace giant Boeing.

KEY DEMOGRAPHICS

KEY STATISTICS

Median resident age: 35.6 years Male: 49.2% Female: 50.8% 0-19: 27.6% 20-34: 19.8% 35-44: 14.7% 45-54: 14.4% 55-64: 10.6% 65-Plus: 12.9% Median household income: $74,166 (year 2007 est.) Total Homes: 1,152,868 (2006) Avg. Persons per HH: 2. 46 (2006) Race: White Non-Hispanic (41.9%) Hispanic (19.3%) Black (31.5%) Other race (7.3%) Education: High School or Higher: 71.8% Bachelor’s Degree or Higher: 25.5% Graduate or Professional Degree: 12.8%

Total Area: 227 square miles Population: 2,833,321

Official Website: egov.cityofchicago.org