[2] In Metra's zone-based fare system, Lake Forest is in zone 4.

As of 2018, Lake Forest is the 82nd busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 607 weekday boardings.

Lake Forest is the northernmost Metra station to be located on the C&M Subdivision, and serves as an emergency stop for Amtrak's Empire Builder, Borealis, and Hiawatha trains.

Since 2010, Amtrak has had plans for its Hiawatha trains to stop at Lake Forest, but as of 2022 has yet to come to fruition.

Metra has proposed the construction of crossovers at Lake Forest to make the station better suited to turning trains around.