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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Edgar Rojas holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Oscar Alcantar works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Oscar earned $95,982 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Raul Avalos is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Deven Bax serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Ryan Birnberg holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Rachel Braun is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Jamarie Coleman serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Ramen Dankha serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Mico Davenport serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Michael Dilger holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Josue Emeric holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Maxwell Fadell holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Gavin Flynn holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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David Galvez holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Jack Garrity is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Connor Griffin holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Joshua Guereca holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Brandon Juarez serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Levelle Kimble Iii holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Eric Lara holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Zachary Maderak holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Maira Martinez is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Adrian Mazon holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Joseph Mckermitt holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Sebastian Meraz works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Sebastian earned $95,982 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Nicholas Munoz is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Max Murphy holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Alexis Pineda serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Elmer Quintero holds the role of Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. In 2026, their total compensation was $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Aaron Ramos serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Liam Reilly works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Liam earned $95,982 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Enrique Rojas Perez serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Santino Ruvalcaba serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Mark Ryl-Kuchar works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Mark earned $95,982 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Ramon Salibellas serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Angelica Sanchez works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Angelica earned $95,982 in 2026.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Zachary Schmid is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Shawn Shawaluk is a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) at Chicago Fire Department. They work full-time. 2026 total compensation came to $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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At Chicago Fire Department, Martin Sullivan serves as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit). They work full-time. Their 2026 pay totaled $95,982.
Firefighter-Emt (Recruit)/Chicago Fire Department
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Joseph Vaci works as a Firefighter-Emt (Recruit) for Chicago Fire Department. Their status is full-time. Joseph earned $95,982 in 2026.