ER Wait Times in Chicago, IL: 25 Hospitals Compared
25 hospitals in Chicago, IL report how long their emergency room patients stay. The middle value here is 228 minutes; Illinois: 173 minutes; national (Medicare): 162 minutes.
What this time means
Each hospital’s number is Medicare measure OP-18b: the median (middle) time from arriving at the emergency room to leaving it, for patients who were treated and went home. Half of these patients left sooner, half later. It is not the time before seeing a doctor, and it leaves out patients who were admitted to the hospital, transferred, or seen for mental health.
Medicare’s name for the measure: “Average (median) time patients spent in the emergency department before leaving from the visit, excluding patients transferred to another facility or psychiatric care/mental health patients. A lower number of minutes is better”. Patients seen October 2024 to September 2025.
Emergency rooms in Chicago, IL, shortest time first
Ranked by Medicare's median time (OP-18b), shortest first; hospitals with the same time share a rank. Left without being seen: share of ER patients who left before a doctor or nurse saw them (January 2024 to December 2024; national 2%). ER volume: patients per year, as Medicare groups it.
| # | Hospital | Median time in the ER | Left without being seen | ER volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Presence Saint Joseph Hospital - Chicago | 146 min (2 h 26 min) | Not reported | — |
| 2 | Insight Hospital and Medical Center Chicago | 170 min (2 h 50 min) | 5% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 3 | Holy Cross Hospital | 173 min (2 h 53 min) | 1% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 3 | Humboldt Park Health | 173 min (2 h 53 min) | 1% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 5 | Thorek Memorial Hospital | 174 min (2 h 54 min) | 10% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 6 | Methodist Hospital of Chicago | 175 min (2 h 55 min) | 1% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 7 | Saint Anthony Hospital | 181 min (3 h 1 min) | 4% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 8 | AMITA Health Resurrection Medical Center | 186 min (3 h 6 min) | Not reported | — |
| 9 | Provident Hospital of Chicago | 190 min (3 h 10 min) | 4% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 10 | Presence Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center | 192 min (3 h 12 min) | Not reported | — |
| 11 | Mt Sinai Hospital Medical Center | 200 min (3 h 20 min) | 1% | High (40,000–59,999) |
| 12 | South Shore Hospital | 224 min (3 h 44 min) | 7% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 13 | Loretto Hospital | 228 min (3 h 48 min) | 6% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 14 | St Bernard Hospital | 231 min (3 h 51 min) | 14% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 15 | Community First Medical Center | 235 min (3 h 55 min) | 2% | Medium (20,000–39,999) |
| 16 | Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center | 237 min (3 h 57 min) | 2% | High (40,000–59,999) |
| 17 | Roseland Community Hospital | 246 min (4 h 6 min) | 8% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 18 | Advocate Trinity Hospital | 247 min (4 h 7 min) | 7% | Very high (60,000 or more) |
| 19 | Swedish Hospital | 254 min (4 h 14 min) | 8% | High (40,000–59,999) |
| 20 | Jackson Park Hospital | 268 min (4 h 28 min) | 0% | Low (under 20,000) |
| 21 | John H Stroger Jr Hospital | 293 min (4 h 53 min) | 1% | Very high (60,000 or more) |
| 22 | The University of Chicago Medical Center | 295 min (4 h 55 min) | 12% | Very high (60,000 or more) |
| 23 | University of Illinois Hospital and Clinics | 298 min (4 h 58 min) | 4% | High (40,000–59,999) |
| 24 | Northwestern Memorial Hospital | 350 min (5 h 50 min) | 10% | Very high (60,000 or more) |
| 25 | Rush University Medical Center | 370 min (6 h 10 min) | 9% | Very high (60,000 or more) |
Other cities in Illinois
Common questions
Which ER in Chicago, IL has the shortest wait?
In Medicare's data for October 2024 to September 2025, Presence Saint Joseph Hospital - Chicago had the shortest median time patients spent in the emergency room before going home: 146 minutes. This is the total time of the visit, not the time before seeing a doctor, and it is an average of past patients, not a promise for your visit.
What is the average ER wait time in Chicago, IL?
The middle value of the 25 hospitals listed here is 228 minutes; for all of Illinois it is 173 minutes. The national figure published by Medicare is 162 minutes. Each hospital's number is the median time from arriving at the emergency room to leaving it, for patients who were treated and went home.
Should I drive to a farther ER to wait less?
No. In an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. These times are past averages; emergency rooms see the sickest patients first, and minutes lost on the road can matter more than minutes in a waiting room.
Does a shorter time mean a better emergency room?
Not by itself. Busier emergency rooms and hospitals that treat more serious cases usually have longer times, so the ER volume is shown next to each time. The time is one measure among many on each hospital’s page.
Sources and dates
- Timely and Effective Care - Hospital — Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), data updated July 22, 2026, retrieved October 31, 2026. Times: patients seen October 2024 to September 2025; left without being seen: January 2024 to December 2024.
- Timely and Effective Care - National — CMS, data updated July 22, 2026 (the national figures).
Only open hospitals that list an emergency room and report this time are included. The state and city figures are the median of the hospitals listed, calculated by us from the same CMS hospital file. Wording last revised November 11, 2026. Not medical advice.