City of Chicago / Chicago Fire Department / Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)
Job-title file
Respond to fires and emergencies, perform rescue and medical aid, and carry out prevention and inspection.
583 employees hold this title in Chicago Fire Department. Median total compensation for the role is $95,982, below the department median of $122,376.
What the records show
How total compensation varies among the 583 people in this role. Even for one job title, pay differs with seniority, step, overtime, and tenure. Each bar is a pay range; the far-right bar collects the highest earners.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area, the median wage for Firefighters — about 14,560 people — is $82,820. Chicago Fire Department pays a median base salary of $117,996 for this role, 42% above that figure — above the 90th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Firefighters across every employer in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Chicago Fire Department’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Firefighters — about 345,990 people — is $59,280. Chicago Fire Department’s median base salary is 99% above that national figure, above the 90th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN range relative to the national one.
Computed over the 2,191 of 2,194 people in this role paid at least $25,000in base salary. The rest are part-year or part-time records, whose actual pay isn’t comparable to a full-time annual wage.
Median total compensation for this role at Chicago Fire Department is $117,996, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 2 jurisdictions. In City of Chicago, the median of $117,996 ranks #1 of 2. See Firefighter EMT across all of City of Chicago →
Median total compensation for comparable Firefighter EMTroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.
Record list
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Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Daniel O'Brien is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Andrew Capuano works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Andrew earned $90,816 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Joshua Irizarry works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Joshua earned $90,816 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Angel Rentas serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Ryan Nolan holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jose Diaz is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Hermes Banda holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Noel Perez is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Ricardo Medina works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Ricardo earned $90,816 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Daniel Torrez serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Robert Mcdonald Iv serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Jake Storck serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jonathan Rosas works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Jonathan earned $90,816 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Marco Portanova works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Marco earned $90,816 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jontrell Darring is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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David Del Olmo is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $90,816.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Ismael Adorno is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Paul Alexander is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Isiah Alpuche serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Edgard Arias works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Edgard earned $74,526 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Kahlan Bardney holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Colin Bemis serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Corey Burke holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Antonio Carbonaro serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Thomas Coon serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Michael Cradick holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Jalen Davis serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
Source-specific fields
At Chicago Fire Department, Thomas Devine serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jeffrey Dicks holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Cal Djuraskovic serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Mary Doherty holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Michael D'Oronzo serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jarred Elliott is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jacob Evanish is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Marshall Everett works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Marshall earned $74,526 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Casey Ferrantella works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Casey earned $74,526 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Ryan Fischer works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Ryan earned $74,526 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Keegan Fogarty is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $74,526.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Abraham Galvan works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Abraham earned $74,526 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
Source-specific fields
At Chicago Fire Department, Thomas Gardiner serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $74,526.