Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Social and Human Service Assistants. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 21-1093
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 6.7% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $47,180 buys $45,500 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $50,330 buys $44,300 (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 | 16,080 | 18,790 | +16.9% |
| 10th percentile | $36,020 | $38,380 | +6.6% |
| 25th percentile | $40,330 | $46,070 | +14.2% |
| Median | $47,180 | $50,330 | +6.7% |
| 75th percentile | $56,520 | $61,150 | +8.2% |
| 90th percentile | $69,590 | $70,900 | +1.9% |
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
- Social and Human Service Assistants in Chicago · Social and Human Service 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.