Chicago vs. New York
Paralegals and Legal Assistants. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 23-2011
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
New York's median is 6.8% higher — but at national prices the two medians buy almost exactly the same.
Chicago's median $70,550 buys $68,100 at national prices (price parity 103.6); New York's $75,330 buys $66,900 (112.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is New York against Chicago.
| Chicago | New York | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 11,590 | 33,850 | +192.1% |
| 10th percentile | $50,160 | $49,180 | −2.0% |
| 25th percentile | $58,740 | $61,040 | +3.9% |
| Median | $70,550 | $75,330 | +6.8% |
| 75th percentile | $85,040 | $97,720 | +14.9% |
| 90th percentile | $106,040 | $121,170 | +14.3% |
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
- Paralegals and Legal Assistants in Chicago · Paralegals and Legal Assistants in New York
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.