Illinois ranks #7 among US states for total patents filed in 2021, with 16,643 patents from 8,822 inventors across 549 cities. On a per-capita basis that is 1.3 patents per 1,000 residents, a standard benchmark for comparing state-level R&D intensity.
Top Cities in Illinois 2021
| Rank | City | Patents | Inventors |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Chicago, IL | 3,265 | 1,816 |
| #2 | Bloomington, IL | 775 | 225 |
| #3 | Champaign, IL | 626 | 179 |
| #4 | Naperville, IL | 518 | 316 |
| #5 | Evanston, IL | 389 | 232 |
| #6 | Peoria, IL | 300 | 186 |
| #7 | Urbana, IL | 252 | 141 |
| #8 | Normal, IL | 251 | 75 |
| #9 | Palatine, IL | 244 | 102 |
| #10 | Arlington Heights, IL | 226 | 135 |
| #11 | Lake Forest, IL | 208 | 51 |
| #12 | Libertyville, IL | 198 | 105 |
| #13 | Northbrook, IL | 195 | 85 |
| #14 | Buffalo Grove, IL | 184 | 103 |
| #15 | Glenview, IL | 181 | 103 |
| #16 | Schaumburg, IL | 176 | 110 |
| #17 | Aurora, IL | 174 | 111 |
| #18 | Des Plaines, IL | 162 | 92 |
| #19 | Hoffman Estates, IL | 159 | 84 |
| #20 | Crystal Lake, IL | 158 | 72 |
| #21 | Dunlap, IL | 147 | 77 |
| #22 | Vernon Hills, IL | 146 | 88 |
| #23 | Lisle, IL | 145 | 71 |
| #24 | Rockford, IL | 141 | 90 |
| #25 | Wheaton, IL | 127 | 56 |