Jackson is an "L" station on the CTA's Red Line in the Loop.

Free transfers to Blue Line trains are available at this station via a lower level transfer tunnel to the Jackson station in the Milwaukee–Dearborn subway and farecard transfers to Purple, Orange, Brown and Pink Line trains are available via the Harold Washington Library – State/Van Buren Loop Elevated station.

The Van Buren-Congress mezzanine closed on January 6, 1984, following the closure of the South Loop's main anchor, Sears, which had a direct entrance from the mezzanine.

At the same time, the south end of the Jackson platform beyond the Jackson-Van Buren mezzanine was closed off with a plywood wall and both the platform area and mezzanine now remain, but abandoned.

The accessible entrance is located on the west side of State Street between Jackson & Adams, just south of 220 State Street.