Illinois Soil Drainage Rankings
How well does the soil drain across Illinois? We ranked every USDA survey area by the percentage of land classified as "well drained." Areas at the top of the list have soils where water moves through at a healthy rate — favorable for building, septic, and gardening. Areas at the bottom have more waterlogged or slowly-draining soils that may require engineered solutions.
The best-drained survey area is Carroll County, Illinois at 81% well-drained soils. The most drainage-challenged is Ford County, Illinois at 1%. With 95% poorly-drained soils, properties in Ford County, Illinois should budget for drainage engineering, alternative septic designs, or raised-bed gardening.
| # | Survey Area | Well Drained | Poorly Drained | Dominant Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carroll County, Illinois | 81% | 14% | Well drained |
| 2 | Stephenson County, Illinois | 76% | 17% | Well drained |
| 3 | Jo Daviess County, Illinois | 75% | 10% | Well drained |
| 4 | Calhoun County, Illinois | 70% | 25% | Well drained |
| 5 | Winnebago County, Illinois | 65% | 24% | Well drained |
| 6 | Ogle County, Illinois | 65% | 24% | Well drained |
| 7 | Rock Island County, Illinois | 65% | 30% | Well drained |
| 8 | Fulton County, Illinois | 64% | 33% | Well drained |
| 9 | Brown County, Illinois | 63% | 33% | Well drained |
| 10 | Peoria County, Illinois | 63% | 32% | Well drained |
| 11 | Knox County, Illinois | 62% | 32% | Well drained |
| 12 | Hardin County, Illinois | 55% | 8% | Well drained |
| 13 | Whiteside County, Illinois | 55% | 37% | Well drained |
| 14 | Mercer County, Illinois | 54% | 37% | Well drained |
| 15 | Schuyler County, Illinois | 54% | 42% | Well drained |
| 16 | Menard County, Illinois | 51% | 42% | Well drained |
| 17 | Henry County, Illinois | 50% | 40% | Well drained |
| 18 | Stark County, Illinois | 50% | 39% | Well drained |
| 19 | Greene County, Illinois | 49% | 49% | Well drained |
| 20 | Scott County, Illinois | 49% | 41% | Well drained |
| 21 | Union County, Illinois | 49% | 18% | Well drained |
| 22 | Warren County, Illinois | 48% | 45% | Well drained |
| 23 | Henderson County, Illinois | 47% | 40% | Well drained |
| 24 | Jersey County, Illinois | 46% | 32% | Well drained |
| 25 | Morgan County, Illinois | 45% | 47% | Well drained |
| 26 | Bureau County, Illinois | 45% | 37% | Well drained |
| 27 | Boone County, Illinois | 45% | 43% | Well drained |
| 28 | Putnam County, Illinois | 44% | 37% | Well drained |
| 29 | Alexander County, Illinois | 44% | 47% | Well drained |
| 30 | McHenry County, Illinois | 43% | 40% | Well drained |
| 31 | Pike County, Illinois | 42% | 34% | Well drained |
| 32 | Cass County, Illinois | 42% | 41% | Well drained |
| 33 | Tazewell County, Illinois | 42% | 43% | Well drained |
| 34 | Jackson County, Illinois | 36% | 37% | Well drained |
| 35 | Monroe County, Illinois | 36% | 48% | Well drained |
| 36 | Gallatin County, Illinois | 32% | 56% | Well drained |
| 37 | Marshall County, Illinois | 32% | 44% | Well drained |
| 38 | Pope County, Illinois | 31% | 10% | Moderately well drained |
| 39 | McDonough County, Illinois | 31% | 65% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 40 | Randolph County, Illinois | 31% | 49% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 41 | Lee County, Illinois | 30% | 47% | Poorly drained |
| 42 | Logan County, Illinois | 30% | 62% | Poorly drained |
| 43 | Adams County, Illinois | 28% | 54% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 44 | Sangamon County, Illinois | 28% | 62% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 45 | Mason County, Illinois | 28% | 42% | Poorly drained |
| 46 | Pulaski County, Illinois | 26% | 50% | Poorly drained |
| 47 | Hancock County, Illinois | 25% | 68% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 48 | White County, Illinois | 24% | 51% | Poorly drained |
| 49 | Clark County, Illinois | 22% | 69% | Poorly drained |
| 50 | Perry County, Illinois | 22% | 63% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 51 | Madison County, Illinois | 22% | 59% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 52 | St. Clair County, Illinois | 21% | 63% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 53 | Macoupin County, Illinois | 21% | 69% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 54 | Williamson County, Illinois | 21% | 32% | Moderately well drained |
| 55 | Crawford County, Illinois | 21% | 61% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 56 | Lawrence County, Illinois | 20% | 62% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 57 | Johnson County, Illinois | 20% | 16% | Moderately well drained |
| 58 | Wabash County, Illinois | 20% | 62% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 59 | Saline County, Illinois | 20% | 49% | Moderately well drained |
| 60 | Massac County, Illinois | 19% | 41% | Moderately well drained |
| 61 | Fayette County, Illinois | 18% | 74% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 62 | Shelby County, Illinois | 17% | 69% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 63 | Edgar County, Illinois | 17% | 63% | Poorly drained |
| 64 | Woodford County, Illinois | 17% | 62% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 65 | Cumberland County, Illinois | 16% | 73% | Poorly drained |
| 66 | Kane County, Illinois | 15% | 44% | Moderately well drained |
| 67 | Bond County, Illinois | 15% | 78% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 68 | Coles County, Illinois | 15% | 65% | Poorly drained |
| 69 | McLean County, Illinois | 15% | 59% | Poorly drained |
| 70 | Kendall County, Illinois | 14% | 52% | Moderately well drained |
| 71 | La Salle County, Illinois | 14% | 70% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 72 | Christian County, Illinois | 13% | 76% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 73 | Effingham County, Illinois | 13% | 76% | Poorly drained |
| 74 | Jasper County, Illinois | 11% | 82% | Poorly drained |
| 75 | Montgomery County, Illinois | 11% | 80% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 76 | Jefferson County, Illinois | 10% | 57% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 77 | Marion County, Illinois | 10% | 81% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 78 | De Witt County, Illinois | 10% | 56% | Poorly drained |
| 79 | Kankakee County, Illinois | 10% | 70% | Poorly drained |
| 80 | Macon County, Illinois | 10% | 75% | Poorly drained |
| 81 | Will County, Illinois | 10% | 67% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 82 | Cook County, Illinois | 9% | 38% | Moderately well drained |
| 83 | Grundy County, Illinois | 8% | 83% | Poorly drained |
| 84 | Vermilion County, Illinois | 8% | 83% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 85 | Washington County, Illinois | 8% | 77% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 86 | Clay County, Illinois | 8% | 85% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 87 | Moultrie County, Illinois | 8% | 74% | Poorly drained |
| 88 | Edwards County, Illinois | 7% | 69% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 89 | DuPage County, Illinois | 6% | 35% | Moderately well drained |
| 90 | Franklin County, Illinois | 6% | 65% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 91 | Richland County, Illinois | 6% | 85% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 92 | Piatt County, Illinois | 6% | 85% | Poorly drained |
| 93 | Champaign County, Illinois | 5% | 81% | Poorly drained |
| 94 | Lake County, Illinois | 5% | 47% | Moderately well drained |
| 95 | Clinton County, Illinois | 4% | 90% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 96 | Wayne County, Illinois | 4% | 82% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 97 | Hamilton County, Illinois | 3% | 65% | Somewhat poorly drained |
| 98 | Douglas County, Illinois | 3% | 91% | Poorly drained |
| 99 | Iroquois County, Illinois | 3% | 90% | Poorly drained |
| 100 | Livingston County, Illinois | 2% | 90% | Poorly drained |
| 101 | DeKalb County, Illinois | 1% | 53% | Moderately well drained |
| 102 | Ford County, Illinois | 1% | 95% | Poorly drained |