Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 49-3023
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Los Angeles's median is 13.6% higher — but after local prices, Los Angeles still leads by 3.6%.
Chicago's median $55,320 buys $53,400 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $62,820 buys $55,300 (113.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Los Angeles against Chicago.
| Chicago | Los Angeles | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 20,140 | 22,330 | +10.9% |
| 10th percentile | $34,520 | $36,520 | +5.8% |
| 25th percentile | $39,240 | $46,160 | +17.6% |
| Median | $55,320 | $62,820 | +13.6% |
| 75th percentile | $78,370 | $76,240 | −2.7% |
| 90th percentile | $92,460 | $90,890 | −1.7% |
Sources
How this page was made
- Wage data
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 release. Public domain.
- Price parity
- Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
- Full pages
- Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Chicago · Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics in Los Angeles
Percentiles are reported exactly as released. Derived (price-adjusted) figures round to the nearest hundred. We take no payment for how any figure is presented.