City of Chicago / Attorney
Role across City of Chicago
Attorney
Provide legal advice, draft and review documents, and represent the agency in legal matters.
7 people hold the Attorney role across 4 departments in City of Chicago, with a median total compensation of $102,516. Among 14 jurisdictions where this role is reported, City of Chicago ranks #5 by median pay.
- Employees
- 7
- Median pay
- $102,516
- Departments
- 4
- Cross-jurisdiction
- #5 of 14
Compared with the local labor market
Attorney pay vs. the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area
Across all employers in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area, the median wage for Lawyers — about 28,320 people — is $165,660. City of Chicago pays a median base salary of $102,516 for this role, 38% below that figure — about the 22nd percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where City of Chicago sits in the local pay range
The bar is the range of annual wages for Lawyers 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 City of Chicago’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Lawyers — about 754,500 people — is $159,670. City of Chicago’s median base salary is 36% below that national figure, about the 25th 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.
Median total compensation for this role at City of Chicago is $102,516, 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
Attorney pay in other jurisdictions
Where Attorneys are paid most
Median total compensation for comparable Attorneyroles in other jurisdictions (highest first). Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not by identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for this role.
Within City of Chicago
Departments with this role
Largest City of Chicago departments for this role
Departments in City of Chicagoemploying the most people in this role. Each bar links to that department’s page for the role.