Chicago vs. Los Angeles
Stockers and Order Fillers. Median, spread and buying power, side by side.
Data released May 2025
BLS OEWS · SOC 53-7065
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 0.5% higher — but after local prices, the advantage flips: a median salary goes further in Chicago.
Chicago's median $38,450 buys $37,100 at national prices (price parity 103.6); Los Angeles's $38,650 buys $34,000 (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 | 79,850 | 85,630 | +7.2% |
| 10th percentile | $33,310 | $35,730 | +7.3% |
| 25th percentile | $36,430 | $37,330 | +2.5% |
| Median | $38,450 | $38,650 | +0.5% |
| 75th percentile | $44,850 | $45,930 | +2.4% |
| 90th percentile | $49,100 | $54,580 | +11.2% |
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
- Stockers and Order Fillers in Chicago · Stockers and Order Fillers 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.