The Home Alone house is a real private home in Winnetka, Illinois, on Lincoln Avenue, and you can look at it from the public sidewalk but you cannot go onto the property or inside. It is not a museum or a rental. Visitors are welcome to take photos from the street; the people who live there are not part of the attraction, so the rules below matter.
This guide intentionally does not give the house number. The Winnetka Historical Society (WHS), the village’s local history group, describes the house as a brick Georgian built in 1920 by architect William Aitken, and says it was still pulling in onlookers nearly 30 years after the film, with fans stopping to pose for photos.
Quick facts
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Location | Lincoln Avenue, Winnetka (street-level only; private residence) |
| City/State | Winnetka, Illinois, on Chicago’s North Shore |
| Film or show | Home Alone (1990) |
| Can you visit? | Exterior only, from the public sidewalk. The home does not open to visitors. |
| Cost | Free to view from the street |
| Best time to go | Daytime. The house draws the biggest crowds in the holiday season. |
What was filmed here
According to Wikipedia’s article on the film, the McCallister house exterior is a three-story single-family house in Winnetka. Most interiors were not shot there. They were rebuilt on a sound stage in the disused gym of New Trier High School’s west campus, and only the main staircase, the attic and most of the first-floor landing were filmed in the real house. The flooded basement scene was shot in the school’s empty swimming pool, and the airplane cabin was built on the school’s basketball courts. Principal photography ran from February 14 to May 8, 1990, per Wikipedia, and the film opened widely on November 16, 1990.
The WHS adds that the house was decorated for the holidays while the crew filmed.
The house today
The house changed hands recently. ABC7 Chicago reported that it sold in January 2025 for $5.5 million after being listed in May 2024 at $5.25 million, and that the interior has been renovated, so it no longer looks like it did in the film. Since a home sale can change what you see from the street, treat any older photos online as a rough guide.
Other places to see
Several nearby sites are public places and are easier to visit than the house.
| Place | Town | Scene | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hubbard Woods Park | Winnetka | Kevin runs through the park | Public park (WHS) |
| Hubbard Woods Pharmacy area | Winnetka | Kevin’s pharmacy encounter with Old Man Marley | WHS places the pharmacy at Gage Street and Green Bay Road. Check what occupies the building today. |
| Chestnut Court | Winnetka | Santa’s workshop, per NBC Chicago | A small brick-paved area next to Village Hall |
| Trinity United Methodist Church | Wilmette | Church exterior | Check service and visitor times with the church |
| Grace Episcopal Church | Oak Park | Church interior | Check with the church |
| O’Hare International Airport | Chicago | Airport scenes | Public airport only if you are flying |
The WHS page on Winnetka film sets confirms the house, Hubbard Woods Park and the pharmacy as Home Alone locations in Winnetka. NBC Chicago’s roundup of the film’s suburban ties from December 2023 adds Chestnut Court, the two churches and the airport. Wikipedia names the New Trier west campus, a school, so it is not a visitor stop.
How to visit
Getting there
Winnetka is a North Shore suburb north of Chicago. Metra’s Union Pacific North Line runs from Ogilvie Transportation Center in downtown Chicago and serves Winnetka, and its Hubbard Woods station is in Winnetka’s Hubbard Woods neighborhood. Check Metra for current schedules, since they change.
Parking
Lincoln Avenue is a residential street. Read posted parking signs, never block a driveway or a crosswalk, and consider parking in a business district and walking. This guide did not find village rules specific to the house, so check with the Village of Winnetka if you plan to bring a group.
Learn more without crowding the street
The Winnetka Historical Society treats the film as part of the village’s story. Its Winnetka film sets page includes photos of filming locations for both Home Alone and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and the society has hosted holiday-season screenings of a documentary short about the making of Home Alone made with local filmmaker John Newcombe, with events listed in December 2023 and December 2024, according to its event page. Programs change from year to year, so check the society’s site for anything scheduled during your trip.
Wikipedia also notes that many of writer-producer John Hughes’s earlier films were shot in Winnetka, though at different houses.
A simple half-day plan
- Take the Metra train out from Ogilvie Transportation Center and get off in Winnetka’s Hubbard Woods area.
- Walk through Hubbard Woods Park and look for the pharmacy location near Gage Street and Green Bay Road.
- Go to Chestnut Court next to Village Hall for the Santa’s workshop location.
- Walk to Lincoln Avenue for a few minutes of quiet photos from the sidewalk, then move on.
Check distances on a map before you set out. This guide has not verified walking times between stops.
Visiting respectfully
NBC Chicago’s guide to the house, from December 2023, notes that the house does not open to visitors, and quotes a local reviewer asking people to “be courteous as it is someone’s residence.” That is the standard to follow.
- Stay on the public sidewalk or street. Do not step onto the lawn, the driveway or the front steps.
- Do not climb the fence or touch the gate, and do not peer into windows.
- Keep your voice down. Do not play the movie’s music, shout lines, or honk.
- Do not recreate scenes, such as sliding down the stairs or setting up props, on the property.
- Do not fly a drone over the house or yard.
- Take your photos quickly, and do not block traffic or the neighbors’ driveways to pose.
- Ask before including residents or neighbors in a photo, and do not photograph children.
- Never leave trash, gifts or notes at the house.
If a resident asks you to move on, do so without arguing. Our filming location etiquette guide has a longer checklist, and our roundup of Christmas movie filming locations you can visit lists places that welcome visitors.
FAQs
Where is the Home Alone house?
It is on Lincoln Avenue in Winnetka, Illinois, a village on Chicago’s North Shore. It is a private residence, so this guide gives only the street.
Can you go inside the Home Alone house?
No. The house is privately owned and does not open to visitors. Most of the interiors seen in the film were built on a sound stage at a local high school anyway.
Can you take photos of the Home Alone house?
Yes, from the public street or sidewalk, as long as you do not trespass or disturb the residents.
Was Home Alone filmed in the real house?
Partly. The exterior, main staircase, attic and first-floor landing were filmed there, per Wikipedia. The rest of the interiors were built on a sound stage in a school gym.
Can you rent or stay at the house?
No. None of the sources reviewed for this guide describe it as available for tours, rentals or stays.
