Welcome to Champaign ...
The city of Champaign is located in Champaign County<1>.
The pronunciation of Champaign: sham-PAYN<2>
Champaign was established in 1855.
When the people of Champaign refer to themselves (known as a demonym), they frequently use Champaignite<3>
From the Census Estimates for 2019, Champaign has a population of 88,877 people<4> (see below for details).
The community of Champaign is 770 feet [235 m] above sea level.<5>.
Time Zone: Champaign lies in the Central Time Zone (CST/CDT) and observes daylight saving time
Note: If you travel east from Champaign (for example, toward State Line City (IN)), you will leave Central Time and cross into the Eastern Time Zone (EST/EDT).
The telephone area code for Champaign: (217)
The ZIP codes for Champaign: 61820-61822, 61824-61826<6>
Websites for Champaign ...
Official Website: www.city.champaign.il.us/
Chamber of Commerce: www.ccchamber.org/
Junior League: www.juniorleaguecu.org/
Population Details ...
Taken from the 2019 Census Estimates, Champaign had an population of 88,877 people. This is an increase of 9.65% since the 2010 Census (or an increase of 31.63% since the 2000 Census).
At the time of the 2010 Census, Champaign had a population of 81,055 people (or 40.31% of the total population of Champaign County). This makes Champaign the county's most populous community.
The population of Champaign represents 0.63% of the population of Illinois (which has 12,830,632 people), making it the state's 11th most populous community.
With a 2010 count of 81,055 people, the population of Champaign increased 20.05% from the 2000 Census (which had a count of 67,518 people).
More information can be found on the Census Page for Champaign.
Communities near Champaign ...
We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Champaign.
- Rantoul
(13 miles [20.9 km] to the north)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Rantoul have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Rantoul
- Rantoul is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 12,305 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Rantoul <8>
- Mahomet
(9 miles [14.5 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Mahomet have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Mahomet
- Mahomet is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 8,968 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Mahomet <8>
- Monticello
(18 miles [29 km] to the west)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Monticello have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Monticello
- Monticello is located in Piatt County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 5,557 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Monticello <8>
- Saint Joseph
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Saint Joseph have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Saint Joseph
- Saint Joseph is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,800 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Saint Joseph <8>
- Tolono
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the south)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Tolono have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Tolono
- Tolono is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 3,349 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Tolono <8>
- Villa Grove
(17 miles [27.4 km] to the south)- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Villa Grove
- Villa Grove is located in Douglas County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 2,414 people
- Fisher
(14 miles [22.5 km] to the northwest)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Fisher have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Fisher
- Fisher is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,911 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Fisher <8>
- Philo
(8 miles [12.9 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Philo have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Philo
- Philo is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,378 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Philo <8>
- Sidney
(10 miles [16.1 km] to the southeast)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Sidney have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Sidney
- Sidney is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,172 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Sidney <8>
- Homer
(15 miles [24.1 km] to the east)- Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Homer have been provided by the GNIS.<7> The coordinates still need to be verified.
- Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Homer
- Homer is located in Champaign County
- Population from the 2020 Census: 1,143 people
- Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Homer <8>
To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...
We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.
We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Champaign. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Champaign.
Using the information from an 1895 Atlas, we've created a list of communities that were in the area of Champaign. Our list includes information such as whether the 1895 community had a post office or railroad service. See our List of 1890's Communities around Champaign.
We also have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Champaign. Our list includes 46 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Champaign.
TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Champaign ...
Looking for more information about Champaign? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.
In addition to the Tourism page for Champaign, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Champaign.
Adding Champaign to Our Gazetteer ...
We originally found mention of Champaign in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.
From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Champaign was on a map titled Rand McNally Map (1881).
We also found Champaign in the book titled Business Atlas and Shippers' Guide (1895).
For more details, see References and Mentions for Champaign.
Off-the-Road Links ...
The official website for Champaign: www.city.champaign.il.us/
The official website for Champaign County: www.co.champaign.il.us/
The official website for State of Illinois: https://illinois.gov
Footnotes ...
| <1> | If you're interested in how the shape of Illinois' counties, including Champaign, have changed over time, we recommend the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. |
| <2> | The pronunciation we've provided is our attempt to give a phonetic pronunciation for Champaign. While it might not be exactly right, hopefully it will be close. If we have it wrong or there's a better way to pronounce the name, please contact us through our Feedback Page. |
| <3> | A demonym is the name for a resident of a community which is usually derived from (or is related to) the name of that community. In other words, it's how the residents of Champaign refer to themselves. It's important to note that there aren't any rules for taking a city's name and turning it into a demonym. A demonym is informal and while the majority of Champaign may use one name, keep in mind that others may use something different. |
| <4> | Population counts have been provided by the U.S. Census Bureau. For more detail, please visit our Census Page for Champaign. |
| <5> | The elevation is an estimate for the area around Champaign - it will be higher in some places and lower in others. |
| <6> | ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a city (such as Champaign). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Champaign or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS). Our list of ZIP Codes for Champaign includes: 61820, 61821, 61824, 61825 & 61826. |
| <7> | The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required. |
| <8> | While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program. |