Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Nursing Assistants. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 31-1131
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 0.9% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $46,940 buys $45,300 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $47,380 buys $41,700 (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 | 45,850 | 43,090 | −6.0% |
| 10th percentile | $38,980 | $40,050 | +2.7% |
| 25th percentile | $42,940 | $46,030 | +7.2% |
| Median | $46,940 | $47,380 | +0.9% |
| 75th percentile | $49,060 | $50,360 | +2.6% |
| 90th percentile | $54,450 | $61,100 | +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
- Nursing Assistants in Chicago · Nursing Assistants 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.