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Trip from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL

Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

30m

Distance

19.4 mi

31 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$3

one way

EV Charging

Unknown

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 8 min
4 AM
0h 28m ★
6 AM
0h 31m
8 AM
0h 36m
10 AM
0h 33m
12 PM
0h 32m
3 PM
0h 33m
5 PM
0h 36m
8 PM
0h 29m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

city in Cook County, Illinois, United States

Des Plaines, IL

Wikimedia Commons

Downtown Brookfield, IL, IL

Brookfield, IL

Quang Vuong

Trip Overview

The drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL covers 19.4 miles and takes about 30m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.

The route leans on South Des Plaines River Road, I 294 South, Tri-State Tollway for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is turn-heavy local drive. At current regular gas prices, budget about $3.03 one way before food or hotel costs.

About the Cities

Starting in Des Plaines, IL

Full guide →

Des Plaines is in Chicagoland. It is an inner-ring, northwest suburb of Chicago with two distinct portions: a suburban northern portion reminiscient of other, nearby northwest suburbs (including Niles, Park Ridge, and Mount Prospect), as well as a built-up southern portion with the businesses, hotels, and other amenities of the O'Hare Airport corridor (much like Rosemont, Chicago's O'Hare neighborhood, and Elk Grove Village).

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 30m. Total distance: 19.4 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

30m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (0%). Straightforward navigation.

Scenic Drive

Turn-heavy local drive route profile.

Drive Character

Expect a 30m drive with frequent turns across 19.4 miles of local and secondary roads.

This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 17 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
South Des Plaines River Road is one of the defining roads on this drive.

How Hard Is This Drive?

Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. Navigation is very simple - set it and forget it for most of the drive.

Driving Effort 1/10

Very easy - short and simple to drive

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

The drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL is easy. At 30m with 0% highway, most drivers will find it relaxed and low-stress.

Where does it get tricky?

This route does not have any notably tricky sections. Most of the drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL is straightforward, with well-signed roads and simple exits.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
South Des Plaines River Road
I 294 South
Tri-State Tollway
Cermak Road
West Cermak Road
North La Grange Road
East 31st Street
Grand Boulevard

Some road-level metrics are being recalculated.

Longest stretch: South Des Plaines River Road — detailed segment metrics are refreshing.

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Des Plaines, IL and Brookfield, IL.

1

Start on Henry Avenue

0.1 mi · 25 sec · Henry Avenue
2

Turn right onto South Des Plaines River Road

1.8 mi · 3 min · South Des Plaines River Road
3

Take the ramp slight right toward I 294 South: Indiana

0.4 mi · 55 sec · I 294 South: Indiana
4

Merge slight left onto Tri-State Tollway

11 mi · 14 min · Tri-State Tollway
5

Keep slight left to continue on Tri-State Tollway

0.5 mi · 30 sec · Tri-State Tollway
6

Take the exit slight right

469 ft · 12 sec
7

Merge slight right onto Tri-State Tollway

0.1 mi · 35 sec · Tri-State Tollway
8

Take the exit slight right toward Cermak Road

0.2 mi · 22 sec · Cermak Road
9

Keep slight right

436 ft · 10 sec
10

Continue on West Cermak Road

2.0 mi · 3 min · West Cermak Road
11

Turn right onto North La Grange Road

1.1 mi · 2 min · North La Grange Road
12

Turn left onto East 31st Street

0.7 mi · 1 min · East 31st Street
13

Turn slight right onto Grand Boulevard

0.7 mi · 1 min · Grand Boulevard
14

Enter the roundabout and take exit 3 toward Maple Avenue

144 ft · 6 sec · Maple Avenue
15

Exit the roundabout onto Maple Avenue

0.2 mi · 38 sec · Maple Avenue
16

Turn right onto Grant Avenue

102 ft · 4 sec · Grant Avenue
17

Arrive at your destination

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$3.03 one way

$6.07 round trip

$3.97/gal 25.4 MPG avg 7 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.36 $3.33 $6.66
premium $4.89 $3.73 $7.47
diesel $5.61 $4.28 $8.57

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$3

Estimated CO2 emission: 6.8 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 71% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 5.8 0 $2.04 $0.93
Efficient EV 4.9 0 $1.70 $0.78
EV Truck/SUV 7.8 0 $2.72 $1.24

Gas CO2

7 kg

EV CO2

2 kg (71% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 15, 2026

Origin

Des Plaines, IL

Morning in Des Plaines on Saturday

Local time

6:50 AM

CDT

Current temp

51°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Destination

Brookfield, IL

Morning in Brookfield on Saturday

Local time

6:50 AM

CDT

Current temp

52°F

Unavailable

Live forecast

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

1 degrees warmer at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

30m on the road

Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

Frequently Asked Questions

The drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL covers 19.4 miles and takes about 30m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.

The main roads are South Des Plaines River Road, I 294 South, Tri-State Tollway. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.

This is a comfortable same-day trip.

The midpoint is about 9.7 miles from Des Plaines, IL. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.

At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $3.03 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.

Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.

The drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL is easy. At 30m with 0% highway, most drivers will find it relaxed and low-stress.

This route does not have any notably tricky sections. Most of the drive from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL is straightforward, with well-signed roads and simple exits.

The route from Des Plaines, IL to Brookfield, IL does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.

How this page is built

Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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Explore More

Return Trip

Brookfield, IL to Des Plaines, IL

Plan the drive back the other way.

19.6 mi 31m

Explore more options from Des Plaines, IL or browse trips ending in Brookfield, IL.

Looking for more statewide routes? Browse IL road trips.