Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Managers, All Other. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 11-9199
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 15.7% higher — but after local prices, Los Angeles still leads by 5.5%.
Chicago's median $145,370 buys $140,300 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $168,160 buys $148,100 (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 | 26,170 | 31,210 | +19.3% |
| 10th percentile | $83,320 | $93,160 | +11.8% |
| 25th percentile | $109,590 | $125,470 | +14.5% |
| Median | $145,370 | $168,160 | +15.7% |
| 75th percentile | $189,350 | $213,340 | +12.7% |
| 90th percentile | $239,340 | $290,440 | +21.4% |
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
- Managers, All Other in Chicago · Managers, All Other 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.