Civil Engineer Salary: Austin vs Chicago
Annual median salary comparison (2024). All figures include local currency, USD equivalent, and PPP-adjusted purchasing power.
🇺🇸 Austin
United States
$109K USD
$109K USD
$109K PPP
Higher Purchasing Power
VS
USD Difference
+4%
Austin vs Chicago
🇺🇸 Chicago
United States
$105K USD
$105K USD
$105K PPP
Detailed Comparison
| Metric | Austin | Chicago | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Currency Salary | $109K USD | $105K USD | — |
| USD Equivalent | $109K | $105K | +4% |
| PPP-Adjusted SalaryWINNER | $109K 🏆 | $105K | +4% |
| 25th Percentile | $87K USD | $84K USD | — |
| Median | $109K USD | $105K USD | — |
| 75th Percentile | $136K USD | $131K USD | — |
| Annual Mean | $117K USD | $113K USD | — |
What Does This Mean?
Austin offers a Civil Engineer salary of $109K USD, while Chicago offers $105K USD — a difference of +4% in raw terms.
After adjusting for purchasing power parity (PPP), Austin's salary is worth $109K in US purchasing power terms, versus $105K for Chicago. This means Austin offers better real purchasing power for this role.
PPP adjustment accounts for differences in local prices — for example, housing costs 3x more in San Francisco than in Warsaw, so a San Francisco salary needs to be much higher to provide an equivalent standard of living.