Side-by-side distribution
Austin
$159,750
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 41.8%
- Live roles
- 4,346
Chicago
$135,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 67.9%
- Live roles
- 4,537
Highest-paying jobs
Performance Marketing Manager
Co-Founder & CEO - AI Retail Planning Autopilot
Inside Sales Rep, Austin, Texas
Strategic Account Executive - TOLA (Remote)
Strategic Account Executive
Lead Systems Software Architect
Chief of Staff
Freelance Business Writer
Freelance Finance Content Writer
Member of Technical Staff - Model Training
Highest-paying jobs
Regional Health Market Leader - Great Lakes Region
Sales Leader, Quality Engineering Services
Account Manager
Outside Sales Representative
Co-Founder & CEO - AI Retail Planning Autopilot
Director / VP Sales
Senior Account Executive, Emerging Enterprise
Senior Account Executive, Emerging Enterprise
Strategic Account Executive - Chicago (Remote)
Licensed Mental Health Therapist- Illinois
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Fluidstack
|
$217,500 | 284 |
Neuralink
|
$118,500 | 48 |
DoorDash USA
|
$145,150 | 47 |
|
Braze
|
$145,000 | 46 |
Gong.io
|
$162,500 | 37 |
Tenstorrent
|
$300,000 | 35 |
MongoDB
|
$149,750 | 34 |
NoGigiddy
|
$43,680 | 29 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
DoorDash USA
|
$130,200 | 107 |
Okta
|
$213,750 | 75 |
|
Braze
|
$140,000 | 69 |
| DR DRW | $177,500 | 57 |
IMC
|
$212,500 | 48 |
Insomniacookies
|
$35,412 | 42 |
Real Chemistry
|
$123,750 | 40 |
Optiver
|
$200,000 | 39 |
Highest-paying roles in Austin
| Role | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| UX Designer | $205,000 | 15 |
| Software Engineer | $200,000 | 463 |
| Data Scientist | $187,500 | 17 |
| DevOps | $171,750 | 72 |
| Recruiter | $159,100 | 251 |
| Product Manager | $157,500 | 376 |
| Customer Success | $152,500 | 527 |
| Project Manager | $141,500 | 192 |
| Sales | $140,325 | 660 |
| Marketing Manager | $134,750 | 252 |
Highest-paying roles in Chicago
| Role | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Software Engineer | $170,000 | 378 |
| Data Scientist | $163,000 | 30 |
| DevOps | $160,000 | 97 |
| UX Designer | $158,750 | 20 |
| Customer Success | $144,740 | 794 |
| Product Manager | $142,500 | 609 |
| Financial Analyst | $141,250 | 200 |
| Sales | $136,000 | 1,119 |
| Recruiter | $132,900 | 410 |
| Marketing Manager | $129,000 | 425 |
Austin vs Chicago: which pays more?
The median for Austin is $159,750 per year (typically $100,000–$213,000), versus $135,000 for Chicago ($90,000–$180,000). That puts Austin about 18% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Austin and Chicago are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.