It depicts in profile a bald eagle perched on a rock with wings spread and holding a shield, with a banner in its beak and sunrise over water in the background.

[2] It is one of nine U.S. state flags to feature an eagle, alongside those of Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wyoming.

Tyndale's seal features a bald eagle perched on a rock carrying a shield in its talons and a banner with the state motto in its beak.

[5] The contest was judged by a panel chaired by Lewis Stevenson, Illinois Secretary of State.

[4] In the 1960s, Chief Petty Officer Bruce McDaniel petitioned to have the name of the state added to the flag.

[8] To mark Illinois' 150th anniversary of statehood in 1968, a sesquicentennial flag was designed for the state.

The flag was dark blue, with a stylised white letter "I" defaced with a red map of Illinois in the center, which was surrounded by a circle of twenty white five-pointed stars, with an additional twenty-first star (larger than the others) set outside the circle to the upper-right.

The logo, designed by Ben Olsen, features a blue silhouette of the state with the word ILLINOIS above.

Executive Director of the Bicentennial Office, Stewart Layne, added, "The sunburst in the middle of the state outline portrays the impact Illinois has made on the country and the world over the past two centuries and the bright future we aspire to for the next 200 years.

"[10][11] The "Illinois Bicentennial Flag Raising Ceremony" took place on December 4, 2017 at the Skokie Village Hall in Cook County.

[15] In August 2024, it was announced that a contest to redesign the flag would begin, with submissions opening on September 3, 2024 and closing October 18, 2024.

[18] The state's General Assembly will make the final decision regardless of the results of the public vote.