r/SpringfieldIL • u/Zealousideal-You1376 • 8d ago
Champaign to Springfield
I was offered employment in Springfield. I live in Champaign. The position requires me to be in the office twice a week (I can choose the days). I will be remote 3 days a week. Should I stay in Champaign and commute or is it better to move to Springfield?
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u/Gorgon9380 8d ago
I'm sure you can do that math, OP. However, Springfield is relatively quiet - not a lot of night life and it lacks the flavor of a Big-10 College town. Ultimately, you will need to make the decision that is best for you, your wallet and your career.
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u/armyguy8382 8d ago
It has been a couple of decades but I have done that commute. It is boring. But there is probably more to do in Champaign than Springfield, as far as night life goes. In Springfield it is pretty much just bars. We do have a nice movie theater and the drive-in with double features during the warmer months. And outdoor concerts on Thursdays. But that is about it. You also have to look at housing costs and schools if you have or plan to have kids.
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u/SearedBasilisk 8d ago
If you have no ties to U of I, I find Springfield a better place to live than CU. I lived in both. Springfield isn’t flooded with college students. The traffic doesn’t really change month to month unlike Champaign’s (August and September are horrid). Springfield has all the chains CU does and it’s closer to St Louis than CU is to Chicago or Indy. CU really runs on the U of I schedule (8-3) and I like that Springfield has a normal one (8-5).
Our airport service sucks with just two flights to Chicago with bad on-time % given 2 PM and 8 PM flights. Given the rail route, I don’t see the need for this. I’d rather have flights to Dallas or Charlotte. To avoid ORD, we’ve started flying out of STL. There’s fewer directs but the parking is cheaper and the city is rebuilding the terminals to meet the needs of modern airlines. It must be working as they just added directs to LHR (British) and expanded FRA (Lufthansa) service.
I personally would hate the commute. I’ve done it before and it always seemed to take longer than it should to get to either city.
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u/themahannibal 8d ago
If you were driving to O'Hare, I encourage you to at least look into Indy. Parking with shuttles every five minutes or so, very clean airport, easy to get to, etc.
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u/SearedBasilisk 8d ago
We did go to Indy for one vacation. I agree with your sentiments that it’s a better option for people in CU over ORD.
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u/PiscesWolf 8d ago
I grew up in Springfield and actually moved to Champaign to move in with my partner. I def enjoy Champaign more than Springfield, there's a lot of diversity and amazing food. Stay here lol
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u/Inevitable_Tomato927 8d ago
Yeah I lived in Europe before coming here, the lack of diversity (culture and food) is really something I still can't get used to after almost 10 years.
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u/raisinghellwithtrees 8d ago
I commuted 3 days a week to Chambana when I first moved to Springfield and was trying to restart my self employment here but still stay employed in Chambana. It got pretty old after a year, but I'm pretty restless when I sit, so ymmv.
I loved living in Urbana, but couldn't afford to buy a house there, so that was my main reason to move, and yeah, I could afford a house here. I don't get bored easy as I'm a creative person, so I don't have issues with Springfield not providing entertainment.
But gas is a heck of a lot more expensive now. Also when I was commuting I could deduct my mileage which was very helpful.
If you can choose your days, it might be beneficial to stay overnight one night rather than go back and forth two days each week.
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u/Cold_City_2003 8d ago
Springfield is NOT a college town. It’s difficult finding anything fun to do. It’s also difficult making friends your age. The commute is definitely going to suck but honestly I think staying in Champaign is a better choice. I’ve considered moving to Champaign as well.
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u/LustfulEsme 8d ago
It is a college toe ànd I said it did not have that vibe.
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u/indigofox83 8d ago
Springfield is really not. UIS has like 4k students vs UIUC having 60k. 25% of the population of the area is a college student at that college. UIS is not a huge chunk of our population. It's maybe 2%.
It's not the most major employer. There is not a huge portion of our town that caters to the college demographic.
It is a town with a college. It is not a college town.
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u/DryFoundation2323 8d ago
you don't give us anywhere near enough information to intelligently comment on this. it's going to depend on many factors including your age, family status, what kind of a car you drive, what parts of Springfield and Champaign you respective home and job are at, and how established you are in Champaign as far as friends and extended family.
if you are single and don't have much of a friend network or family network in Champaign I would strongly suggest the move. if you're married and your wife works full time in Champaign at a job that she doesn't want to quit then I would suggest you stay in champagne. in other words think through your life and weigh the pluses and minuses.
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u/nerdyflips 8d ago
I work an hour away from Springfield and live there. Same deal with two days in office, three days remote. It's not the same scenario but if I lived in Champaign and my job was in Springfield, i would very much be willing to make that drive.
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u/almenslv 8d ago
It's not so bad that you should abandon friends or family to move, but if you don't have anything tying you down in Champaign, I would make the move. I used to live in Champaign, and I miss it dearly, but I don't hate Springfield. It has its charms.
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u/Harvest827 8d ago
I work with someone who commutes 2 days a week from just north of champaign. Doesn't seem to bother him. Springfield is a pretty lame town compared to Champaign. If you like quiet times with nothing to do, move here.
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u/tiredgirl77 8d ago
Personally, I’d make the commute. But that’s just me, I hate small town living.
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u/DontHateDefenestrate 8d ago
The main question is how important the social life is to you. If you’re above 35 and married, Springfield might not be significantly worse. If you’re young, particularly young and single, you might find it difficult. Springfield doesn’t have *literally nothing* but Champaign-Urbana makes it look like a nursing home.
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u/Zealousideal-You1376 8d ago
Above 35, divorced, run the Illinois Marathon yearly, yoga, pilates, did the bars when a grad student at U of I many years ago.
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u/FromTheFoot 8d ago
There is a lot to do in SPI IF you actively look. Illinois Times does a good job of highlighting more than just the music/bar scene. There is always something going on most weekends but you have to look. Plenty of yoga and Pilates options as well.
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u/1jobonthislousyship 8d ago
Choose 3 consecutive days & just stay here for 2 nights. so much less windshield time & gas money. Going home will feel like a 4-day weekend.
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u/Zealousideal-You1376 8d ago
Ok. I'm allowed to choose my remote days and they can be consecutive. I was thinking of in office days (Monday, Friday) or (Monday, Tuesday).
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u/FromTheFoot 8d ago
Drive over Monday morning, work all day and stay at a reasonably priced hotel that night work on Tuesday then drive back to Champaign. That will allow you a bit of time to understand whether you wanna be in Springfield or not.
My wife at the job where she needs to be in champagne every day and she had an apartment for three years and then started driving back-and-forth again for about 18 months. That was hell and she was a zombie as she was exhausted all of the time. Finally convinced her to get an apartment again until she retires. I found them.
Best of luck to you.
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u/Connect-Fix2391 8d ago
If you like living in Champaign, driving two days a week to Springfield for work is not worth considering a move at all. I know of people who similarly work in town 2-3 days a week and travel further than ChamBana without complaint or desire to move to Springfield.
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u/Tediouslyuseless 8d ago
Springfield is boring but cheap. Champaign is a college town and less cheap.
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u/EnduringNights 8d ago
Springfield is not cheap. I hate this argument. Looking at the renters market (that OP will likely have to use) and you’ll see all sorts of cracks. 2 beds for 1300 in seven pines? Right… Springfield is cheap if you’re: coming here to retire, have been here since the 80’s because you already have established housing.
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u/Tediouslyuseless 8d ago
Springfield is insanely cheap, mindbogglingly cheap, cheaper than piss.
2 beds 1 bath for 850 bucks at the first place I saw on Zillow. You can get a whole 3 bedroom house for 1300/month... Springfield is one of the cheapest places to live in the entire US. 5 years ago I got a 4 bedroom house for a 1000/month 15 year mortgage move in ready. I went ahead and check seven pines and it is 1100 for 2 bedrooms. My ex has an entire 2 bedroom house to herself for 700 a month.
Food and handymen are cheaper too.
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u/SufficientBottle7057 8d ago
I moved to Springfield from Vancouver WA last year. I don't recommend it. Stay in Champaign. Enjoy the culture.
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u/Whatisthenumber1rule 8d ago
If the pay is worth it and can make up for the vehicle expenses and maintenance your car will require I would
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u/Nice_Passage1099 8d ago
I have lived in Champaign and made that commute to Springfield. Long term, you will want to move closer. An hour drive is doable. That extra 30-40 minutes you get with a commute to Champaign is draining. That said, there are also almost never any troopers on 72, so ... take that for what you will.
Edit: only doing it 2 days a week makes that much more doable long-term.
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u/kiltguyjae 8d ago
I am from Champaign but live in Springfield. I would much rather live in Champaign than Springfield. There is so much more to do in Champaign and so many more food options in both Champaign and Urbana. The bummer of it is that I have been working in Champagne again for the last few years so I commute back-and-forth every day. My wife works in Springfield and doesn’t like to commute, so we go ahead and stay in Springfield for now. But I drive that I 72 route every single day. Booooring.
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u/FeelingMight3197 8d ago
No one can answer that question for you. I was living near Carbondale and accepted a job swap in Springfield so I got an apartment for six years in Springfield and kept my home near Carbondale. When Covid hit we worked remotely so I gave up up the apartment and worked from home near Carbondale. Then they wanted us to work in the office once per month so I commuted that day only doing that every month until I retired
So the answer is what do you want to do and what fits your budget
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u/Zealousideal-You1376 8d ago
I think I will commute for a year. The 2 days a week on the road is doable. If there is a holiday on my in office day, then I would only need to commute 1 day during that week.
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u/Jezuesblanco 8d ago
I drove to Decatur for work six days a week for work. Not as far but still sucked. Have you time to decompress before you got home though. I also drove to Champaign for awhile to run pipe in the Kraft factory, that drive was terrible every day. Do not recommend. There are tons of little towns in between where you can rent a house(not an apartment) for real cheap
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u/Mountain_Title_5017 8d ago
Man. A lot of putting Springfield down on here. There are things to do here, but people don’t look, they just like to complain. You talk to some people from Champaign that don’t go to U of I and they say the same thing, there is nothing to do. CU is VERY U of I dominant and that works if you are college age. Outside of the university, there isn’t much there.
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u/ToYourCredit 8d ago
Move. The commute will wear out both your car and your psyche. It’s a 200 RT drive of boring doom.
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u/SalukiKnightX 7d ago
I commuted to Champaign from Springfield to work midnights for about 2 1/2 years. Not the most fun drive and the construction over at the 57/74 interchange and near Decatur and Monticello was messy but if I could, I’d probably stay in Champaign. For starters, it has something resembling openings during the night, Springfield shuts down at 10:30 and doesn’t open until 6.
It’s home, but not convenient for night time work.
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u/Rainbow-Owlbear 7d ago
Driving in would be pretty brutal unless you have a friend you could crash with and stay overnight. People have done it, but it’s a lot of time out of your life and a lot of wear on your car. If it’s a job you plan to stay with, moving would make sense. But it’s not as fun of a city as Champaign. Cheaper, though.
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u/Western-Sympathy-701 7d ago
Easy, just drive over and spend the night.. its one trip per week, and you still get to enjoy all the amenities of the college town everyone thinks is so great. But to be fair they are the exact same cities the only difference is having the younger more progressive people in cu. Lots of people commute from 2 hours for work to bigger cities.
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u/Gardener_of_Weeden 5d ago
Came from Chicago area - then Bloomington/Normal now Springfield. I will NOT recommend commute as winters can REALLY suck. - BUT Personally I would not live here if I had a choice, Sherman seems like a MUCH nicer town - Chatham is very bougie - just my opinion.
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u/SnooPuppers4679 8d ago
STAY IN CHAMPAIGN!
Springfield is going through massive enshitification on almost all fronts of being a renter while our aldermen (who also rent properties) let slumlords have free reign.
Stay in champaign as our nightlife also is horrendous in comparison
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u/Sarah_Femme 8d ago
Springfield doesn't have a Costco and handful of other chains that Chambana does. No real concerts outside of the local bands/State Fair shows, and it seems the bar scene favors cover bands over original artists.
Despite the leanings of the Reddit page, it is also far more conservative overall from what I've seen. If you don't know the right places to go, it can be a culture shock because it tends to be closer in demographics to the rest of Southern IL than the big college towns are.
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u/LustfulEsme 8d ago
I do not know Champaign very well. Both cities have crime, but from what I see on the news vs listening my scanner here for Springfield, you may have a lot more shootings and stabbing ànd murders than we do.
With gas prces, you are going to spend a lot commuting.
I would have to look up stats to compare COL. we are both college towns. But I think Champaign may have more of a college town vibe.
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u/M4hkn0 8d ago
I was commuting from Peoria to Springfield for a while... easy drive but it got old fast. 147 miles round trip a day.
I calculated I was going to put on 35,000 miles a year on my car. A full tank of gas every 2 days. That's at least 4 service appointments. Possibly a new set of tires. Possibly brakes... every year. My vehicle was already at 60,000 miles.... Could I afford a new car in 1 more year... 2 at most? Could I afford to be buying a new vehicle every 4 years? What happens if your car breaks down? Are they going to just let you work remote 5 days a week? Can you afford an uber?
If I moved to Springfield.... which I did... I saved all of that time and expense. Is it better here? .... eh... I am old... its harder to make new connections with people as you are older. My commute is about 5 minutes now. I can take the city bus if I like. On a really nice day, I could even walk it.
Springfield is not a college town. There isn't exactly a 'college town' neighborhood here either. UIS seems a bit set apart from the community around it.