Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Customer Service Representatives. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 43-4051
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 3.7% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $47,100 buys $45,500 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $48,840 buys $43,000 (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 | 75,240 | 66,590 | −11.5% |
| 10th percentile | $34,480 | $37,950 | +10.1% |
| 25th percentile | $38,260 | $43,090 | +12.6% |
| Median | $47,100 | $48,840 | +3.7% |
| 75th percentile | $58,950 | $60,300 | +2.3% |
| 90th percentile | $71,530 | $74,860 | +4.7% |
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
- Customer Service Representatives in Chicago · Customer Service Representatives 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.