Chicago vs. Houston
Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 47-2152
Fig. 1 — Side by side
Both distributions, one scale
10th to 90th percentile, median struck in red
Table 1 — Adjusted
Chicago's median is 40.7% higher — but after local prices, Chicago still leads by 37.7%.
Chicago's median $103,380 buys $99,800 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Houston's $61,300 buys $62,200 (98.6).
Table 2 — The figures
Point by point
Published percentiles for both metros; the last column is Houston against Chicago.
| Chicago | Houston | Δ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 12,750 | 10,980 | −13.9% |
| 10th percentile | $53,960 | $39,920 | −26.0% |
| 25th percentile | $74,300 | $49,260 | −33.7% |
| Median | $103,380 | $61,300 | −40.7% |
| 75th percentile | $122,540 | $75,680 | −38.2% |
| 90th percentile | $127,200 | $85,680 | −32.6% |
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
- Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in Chicago · Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters in Houston
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.