Cairo is a city in Alexander County, Illinois, home to about 1,682 people across 7.0 square miles. Its ZIP code is 62914.
Mostly Cairo
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| Nearest major airport | St. Louis Lambert International Airport (STL)136 miles away |
|---|---|
| Closer regional airport | Barkley Regional Airport (PAH)23 miles away |
| Nearest city of 250,000+ | St. Louis, MO126 miles away |
| Nearest city of 1 million+ | Chicago, IL343 miles away |
Straight-line distances from the center of Cairo; driving is longer.
Source: Airports from OurAirports (scheduled passenger service); city centers and populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Source: Members of Congress from the congress-legislators project; districts from the Census Bureau’s relationship files; governor and mayor from Wikidata.
Cairo had 1,733 residents in the 2020 census, down 52% since 2000.
It’s the 549th largest of 1,450 towns in Illinois by population.
Alexander County grew from 19,384 residents in 1900 to 5,240 in 2020.
Alexander County, 1900–2020
Source: U.S. Census Bureau decennial censuses (counties 1900–1990 from the Bureau’s historical county file).
Average highs peak around 89°F in summer, and winter lows average 26°F. About 51.2 inches of rain and melted snow fall in a typical year.
Source: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Cairo 3n, IL weather station (2 miles away).
960 jobs at 75 businesses in Alexander County. The biggest industries by employees:
Source: U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 (private employers; jobs counted where people work).
36 doctors and other health care providers list an office in Cairo.
Nearest hospitals
Providers with an office here
| Primary care doctors | 3 |
|---|---|
| Dentists | 2 |
| Nurse practitioners and physician assistants | 5 |
| Mental health providers | 26 |
| Pharmacies | 2 |
Source: Hospitals from CMS Hospital General Information (ratings are CMS overall star ratings); straight-line distances; providers from the CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), by practice address and primary specialty.
Parks (6 nearby)
Grocery stores (1 nearby)
Libraries (1 nearby)
Museums (1 nearby)
Counts are within about 2 miles of the center of town.
Source: Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (openstreetmap.org/copyright), as mapped by volunteers; it can miss places or include closed ones.
Public schools here are run by Cairo USD 1. Check each district’s attendance zones for a specific address.
| School | Grades | Students | Type | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cairo Elementary SchoolCairo | Pre-K–6 | 148 | Public | 0.1 mi |
| Cairo Jr/Sr High SchoolCairo | 7–12 | 130 | Public | 0.6 mi |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, NCES: Common Core of Data (2024-2025) for public schools. Listed by address; we don’t rate schools.
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Town boundaries don’t always match ZIP codes: a ZIP code can cross into neighboring towns, and a town can share a ZIP code with its neighbors. Facts describe the town itself; market figures describe whole ZIP codes.