Software Developers salary in Chicago, Illinois

About 41,300 Software Developers worked in the Chicago metro in 2024, making it one of the larger markets for the role in the country. The median annual wage came in at $130,030, just under $2,300 above the Illinois median of $127,770. The gap is narrow, which tells us Chicago accounts for most of the state's employment in this role and sets the statewide figure rather than pulling far above it.

Against the national median of $138,520, Chicago runs about $8,500 behind. That is a noticeable gap. Part of it reflects Chicago's cost of living sitting below that of the coastal metros that push the US figure up, particularly San Francisco and Seattle.

The range between low and high earners is wide. The 10th percentile comes in at $78,300, while the 90th percentile reaches $173,770. Top earners in Chicago make roughly 2.2 times what those at the bottom of the range do. That kind of spread usually shows up when a market has both a large entry-level pipeline and a meaningful senior layer, which a metro with 41,000-plus developers tends to produce. The mean wage of $130,930 sits very close to the median, so unlike some markets, a small group of extremely high earners is not pulling the average far above the middle.

One number worth watching: the 75th percentile lands at $161,810, only $12,000 below the 90th. Compression at the top of the range suggests the highest earners in Chicago are not as far out ahead as they are in tighter, higher-cost markets. Whether that reflects local employer mix or the depth of local talent supply, the BLS figures do not say.