Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Management Analysts. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 13-1111
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Chicago's median is 0.2% higher — but after local prices, Chicago still leads by 8.9%.
Chicago's median $105,090 buys $101,400 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $104,930 buys $92,400 (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 | 37,510 | 37,060 | −1.2% |
| 10th percentile | $60,760 | $60,300 | −0.8% |
| 25th percentile | $81,580 | $79,450 | −2.6% |
| Median | $105,090 | $104,930 | −0.2% |
| 75th percentile | $137,080 | $142,000 | +3.6% |
| 90th percentile | $177,770 | $191,160 | +7.5% |
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
- Management Analysts in Chicago · Management Analysts 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.