Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary Salary in Chicago, IL (2024)
Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area earn a median of $36,830 per year based on 43,600 jobs counted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2024. That is +4.5% against the national median of $35,240 for this occupation.
Pay distribution
The median is a single point on a wide curve. The table below shows where teaching assistants, except postsecondary actually sit across the pay range in Chicago, IL, from the bottom decile to the top.
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $14.00 | $29,120 | |
| 25th percentile | $14.73 | $30,630 | |
| Median | — | $36,830 | half earn more, half earn less |
| 75th percentile | $21.99 | $45,740 | |
| 90th percentile | $23.04 | $47,920 | |
| Average (mean) | — | $38,290 |
How Chicago, IL compares
The local median of $36,830 runs +4.5% above the US median of $35,240 for this occupation; it pays 28.5% less than the metro-wide median across all jobs ($51,510); within the metro it ranks 641st of 700 detailed occupations by median pay.
| Benchmark | Median annual | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago, IL — this occupation | $36,830 | — |
| US median, same occupation (all areas) | $35,240 | +4.5% |
| Chicago, IL — all occupations | $51,510 | -28.5% |
| Highest metro in the US for this job | $49,980 | -26.3% |
The location quotient of 1.09 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
High confidence The relative standard error on this estimate is 0.7%, which is a tight margin — the figure is stable enough to plan around.
Ranked 641st of 700 detailed occupations in the metro by median annual wage.
Highest-paying jobs in Chicago, IL
To put $36,830 in context, these are the best-paid detailed occupations in the same metro area. This occupation sits 641st.
| Occupation | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| General Internal Medicine Physicians | $234,440 | 1,420 |
| Dentists, All Other Specialists | $221,790 | 80 |
| Physicians, All Other | $215,680 | 14,850 |
| Pediatricians, General | $198,440 | 1,120 |
| Air Traffic Controllers | $184,930 | 840 |
| Family Medicine Physicians | $182,830 | 1,200 |
| Dentists, General | $175,140 | 3,980 |
| Computer and Information Systems Managers | $168,230 | 21,760 |
| Lawyers | $166,090 | 28,380 |
| Financial Managers | $164,470 | 41,170 |
Where teaching assistants, except postsecondary earn the most
Across the 25 metro areas with released data for this occupation, medians run from $27,540 to $49,980. These are the top markets.
| Metro area | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $49,980 | 20,120 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $47,630 | 17,140 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $46,070 | 21,130 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $45,420 | 50,760 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $43,010 | 11,530 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $42,010 | 22,780 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $38,580 | 27,250 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $38,060 | 12,770 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $37,980 | 25,480 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $37,070 | 123,210 |
See the full national picture on the Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary salary by metro page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for teaching assistants, except postsecondary in Chicago, IL?
The median annual wage is $36,830. That means half of the teaching assistants, except postsecondary working in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area earn more than this figure and half earn less. The average is $38,290.
What do the highest and lowest paid teaching assistants, except postsecondary in Chicago, IL earn?
The bottom 10% earn $29,120 or less, while the top 10% earn $47,920 or more — a spread of $18,800 between the two ends of the distribution. The middle half of workers sit between $30,630 and $45,740.
Is teaching assistants, except postsecondary pay in Chicago, IL above the local average?
Yes, it is 28.5% below the all-occupation median for the metro, which is $51,510. That comparison is the fairer one for judging local purchasing power, because it holds the metro's overall cost and wage level constant.
How does Chicago, IL pay compare with the rest of the US for this job?
At $36,830 the metro median is 4.5% higher than the US median of $35,240 for teaching assistants, except postsecondary. Across the 25 metro areas covered here, this occupation ranges from $27,540 to $49,980.
How many teaching assistants, except postsecondary work in Chicago, IL?
BLS counts about 43,600 people in this occupation in the metro area, or 9.74 jobs per 1,000 total jobs. The location quotient of 1.09 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
About these figures
Figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for 2024 (employment relative standard error 2.6%). OEWS measures what employers pay, not what any individual earns; it excludes self-employed workers, and it does not adjust for local cost of living.
Read the full methodology, or the original data at bls.gov/oes.