Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 13-1161
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 3.2% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $80,400 buys $77,600 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $82,990 buys $73,100 (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 | 30,970 | 39,390 | +27.2% |
| 10th percentile | $49,910 | $48,720 | −2.4% |
| 25th percentile | $62,160 | $64,060 | +3.1% |
| Median | $80,400 | $82,990 | +3.2% |
| 75th percentile | $105,710 | $120,960 | +14.4% |
| 90th percentile | $140,260 | $157,370 | +12.2% |
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
- Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists in Chicago · Market Research Analysts and Marketing Specialists 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.