Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Billing and Posting Clerks. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 43-3021
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 6.2% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $49,960 buys $48,200 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $53,070 buys $46,700 (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 | 13,610 | 16,670 | +22.5% |
| 10th percentile | $39,840 | $42,470 | +6.6% |
| 25th percentile | $45,760 | $48,360 | +5.7% |
| Median | $49,960 | $53,070 | +6.2% |
| 75th percentile | $61,450 | $62,390 | +1.5% |
| 90th percentile | $70,620 | $76,330 | +8.1% |
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
- Billing and Posting Clerks in Chicago · Billing and Posting Clerks 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.