The average salary in Chicago is $60,132, with a median income of $50,000. A good salary in Chicago is anything over $50,000, which is the median income. Another way to calculate a good salary in Chicago is to look at the price of housing and use that to back into a good salary. Experts agree that you want to maintain about a 5 to 1 home price to income ratio. Based on the median home price of $258,000, a good salary in Chicago would be $51,600. Lastly, we can determine a good salary in Chicago by looking at the cost of living and comparing it to the US average salary. The cost of living in Chicago is 11% higher than than the national average. The national average salary is $56,310, so a good salary in Chicago is anything over $62,504 by this measure.