Chicago vs. San Francisco
Computer and Information Systems Managers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 11-3021
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
San Francisco's median is 34.0% higher — but after local prices, San Francisco still leads by 20.1%.
Chicago's median $173,760 buys $167,700 at national prices (price parity 103.6); San Francisco's $232,890 buys $201,400 (115.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is San Francisco against Chicago.
| Chicago | San Francisco | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 24,950 | 23,830 | −4.5% |
| 10th percentile | $112,980 | $155,660 | +37.8% |
| 25th percentile | $138,190 | $203,840 | +47.5% |
| Median | $173,760 | $232,890 | +34.0% |
| 75th percentile | $214,880 | $313,220 | +45.8% |
| 90th percentile | $280,060 | $335,770 | +19.9% |
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
- Computer and Information Systems Managers in Chicago · Computer and Information Systems Managers in San Francisco
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.