City comparison
Bedford, TX is about 800 miles (1,300 km) from Chicago, IL in a straight line. By road, the drive is roughly 1,000 miles, or about 17 hours behind the wheel at highway speeds.
Driving distance is a rough estimate (great-circle × 1.25); driving time assumes a 60 mph blended average. Real trips run 10–20% longer with stops.
A direct flight from Bedford, TX to Chicago, IL takes about 1 h 37 min, covering roughly 800 miles in a straight line. Connecting itineraries with a layover typically add 1–3 hours.
Block-to-block estimate at ~500 mph cruise, including taxi, climb, and descent — what an airline would publish, not pure airborne time.
Chicago has a population of 2,721,914, vs 49,455 in Bedford — about 55.0× larger by population. By land area, Chicago covers about 230 sq mi vs 10 sq mi for Bedford.
Population from US Census ACS. Land area from the Census Gazetteer (city proper, excluding inland water).
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Bedford | Chicago | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,332/mo | $1,314/mo | 1.4% higher in Bedford |
| Median home value | $292,100 | $304,500 | 4.2% higher in Chicago |
| Median household income | $80,924 | $71,673 | 12.9% higher in Bedford |
| Groceries index | 102.5 | 106.4 | 3.8% higher in Chicago |
| Utilities index | 91.1 | 84.4 | 8.0% higher in Bedford |
| Transportation index | 99.8 | 100.3 | 0.6% higher in Chicago |
| Healthcare index | 99.2 | 100.2 | 1.0% higher in Chicago |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Bedford, you'd need $98,085 in Chicago to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Chicago, IL is about 1.9% cheaper overall than Bedford, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 5% higher in Bedford than in Chicago. If you earn $80,000 in Bedford, you'd need about $78,468 in Chicago to keep the same standard of living.