Salaries in Chicago.
3,500+ roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 1.07x national average. Last updated April 2026.
3445 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$389,000
Principal AI Research Scientist
Median of All Roles
$167,000
AI Retail/Commerce Specialist
Entry Level
$34,000
Hotel Clerk / Front Desk
Salary data sourced from SEC filings, H-1B Labor Condition Applications (DOL), Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and aggregated job postings across 50+ platforms. Ranges reflect 25th to 75th percentile for full-time positions. Cost-of-living adjustments use Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities (2025 index). Last updated April 2026.
Chicago, IL has a cost-of-living index of 1.07x the national average. The highest-paying role is Principal AI Research Scientist at $389,000, while the median across all 3445 roles is $167,000. Chicago's economy is anchored by finance, manufacturing, and a rapidly expanding tech sector.
About the Chicago market
Chicago's economy is anchored by finance, manufacturing, and a rapidly expanding tech sector. The city has become a major hub for fintech, enterprise SaaS, and e-commerce. With lower living costs than coastal cities and a deep talent pool from top universities, Chicago offers strong salary to cost of living ratios for professionals across industries.
Financial ServicesManufacturingTechnologyHealthcareTransportation & Logistics
Top 50 salaries in Chicago
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $389,000 | $304,000 – $506,000 |
| 2 | Technical Fellow | $367,000 | $286,000 – $477,000 |
| 3 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $363,000 | $283,000 – $472,000 |
| 4 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $361,000 | $282,000 – $468,000 |
| 5 | Distinguished Engineer | $360,000 | $273,000 – $458,000 |
| 6 | Chief Security Officer | $360,000 | $280,000 – $468,000 |
| 7 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $357,000 | $279,000 – $464,000 |
| 8 | Senior VP of Security | $356,000 | $278,000 – $463,000 |
| 9 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $347,000 | $271,000 – $452,000 |
| 10 | Senior VP of Product | $346,000 | $270,000 – $449,000 |
| 11 | Chief Science Officer | $345,000 | $269,000 – $448,000 |
| 12 | L7 Software Engineer | $345,000 | $269,000 – $448,000 |
| 13 | SVP of Product | $342,000 | $267,000 – $444,000 |
| 14 | Principal Cryptographer | $341,000 | $266,000 – $443,000 |
| 15 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $337,000 | $263,000 – $439,000 |
| 16 | Staff AI Research Scientist | $335,000 | $262,000 – $436,000 |
| 17 | Chief Strategy Officer | $335,000 | $262,000 – $436,000 |
| 18 | Principal Applied Scientist | $334,000 | $261,000 – $434,000 |
| 19 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $334,000 | $261,000 – $434,000 |
| 20 | SVP of Sales | $334,000 | $260,000 – $434,000 |
| 21 | Chief Legal Officer | $331,000 | $258,000 – $430,000 |
| 22 | Chief Architect | $331,000 | $258,000 – $430,000 |
| 23 | SVP of Technology | $330,000 | $258,000 – $430,000 |
| 24 | Principal Kernel Engineer | $328,000 | $256,000 – $427,000 |
| 25 | Senior VP of Design | $328,000 | $257,000 – $427,000 |
| 26 | Chief Machine Learning Officer | $327,000 | $255,000 – $426,000 |
| 27 | CTO | $327,000 | $255,000 – $426,000 |
| 28 | Chief AI Officer | $325,000 | $241,000 – $419,000 |
| 29 | Chief Commercial Officer | $325,000 | $253,000 – $423,000 |
| 30 | SVP of Engineering | $322,000 | $251,000 – $418,000 |
| 31 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $322,000 | $251,000 – $418,000 |
| 32 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $321,000 | $251,000 – $417,000 |
| 33 | Senior Head of Product | $321,000 | $251,000 – $418,000 |
| 34 | Chief Technology Officer | $320,000 | $237,000 – $419,000 |
| 35 | Principal AI Infrastructure Engineer | $319,000 | $248,000 – $413,000 |
| 36 | SVP of Business Development | $317,000 | $247,000 – $413,000 |
| 37 | Chief Data & AI Officer | $316,000 | $235,000 – $412,000 |
| 38 | Principal LLM Engineer | $316,000 | $246,000 – $410,000 |
| 39 | Staff AI Agent Architect | $316,000 | $247,000 – $411,000 |
| 40 | Senior Head of Security | $316,000 | $246,000 – $410,000 |
| 41 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $315,000 | $246,000 – $409,000 |
| 42 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $312,000 | $243,000 – $406,000 |
| 43 | Chief Trust Officer | $312,000 | $243,000 – $405,000 |
| 44 | SVP of Data | $312,000 | $244,000 – $407,000 |
| 45 | Chief Digital Officer | $311,000 | $242,000 – $405,000 |
| 46 | SVP of Strategy | $311,000 | $243,000 – $405,000 |
| 47 | VP of AI | $310,000 | $235,000 – $407,000 |
| 48 | Chief Growth Officer | $310,000 | $242,000 – $403,000 |
| 49 | Principal AI Engineer | $309,000 | $241,000 – $402,000 |
| 50 | VP of AI Research | $307,000 | $239,000 – $399,000 |
Tax considerations
Illinois has a flat 4.95% state income tax. Chicago does not levy a separate city income tax, making the overall burden moderate compared to coastal metros.
Negotiating in Chicago
Reference the Bay Area or NYC salary band for your role, then negotiate a modest discount. Chicago employers routinely offer 85 to 90% of coastal pay.
Know the number. Get the offer.
Orbyt gives you the salary data, interview prep, and pipeline tools to negotiate from a position of strength.
Start free.