Best Buildings Near Metra for Suburb Commuters

TL;DR If you commute to the suburbs, or want easy weekend trips out of the city, living near Metra is the move. The West Loop wins, with Union Station and Ogilvie at its edge, putting buildings like Catalyst Chicago, Presidential Towers, Alta at K Station, and Echelon a short walk from the suburban lines.

The L gets all the attention, but for a lot of Chicago renters the more important train is Metra, the commuter rail that runs to the suburbs. If your job is in the suburbs, or you just want easy access out of the city, living near a Metra terminal changes your week. Here is where to be.

The West Loop is the Metra neighborhood

It is not close: the West Loop wins. Union Station and the Ogilvie Transportation Center, the two big downtown Metra hubs, sit right at the neighborhood's eastern edge. Between them they serve the lines running to the western, northwestern, and southwestern suburbs.

Buildings like Catalyst Chicago, Presidential Towers, Alta at K Station, Echelon, and Arkadia West Loop put you a short walk from those terminals, so a reverse commute to a suburban office is genuinely easy, and you can hop a train for a weekend trip without a car.

The Loop works too

The Loop also gives you Metra access, with Union and Ogilvie a short ride or walk away, plus the LaSalle Street and Millennium Station terminals serving the Rock Island and Electric District lines. Loop buildings near those stations are a strong option for South Side and south-suburban commutes.

Why this matters

A suburban job does not have to mean suburban living. Living near Metra lets you keep a downtown lifestyle, walkable, social, transit-rich, while commuting out to a job that transit usually serves poorly. It is also the easiest way to visit family, catch a suburban event, or get to a connecting trip, all without owning a car.

And the West Loop bonus is that you are not just near Metra: you are in the middle of the city's best dining, with the Green and Pink Lines and quick highway access too.

How to use this

If a suburban commute or easy out-of-city trips are part of your life, prioritize the West Loop near Union and Ogilvie. For the driving alternative, see our best buildings for car commuters guide, for the all-options view our multi-modal commuters ranking, and for the neighborhood our West Loop and Fulton Market guide. Then browse current openings and book a tour.

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