Mechanical Engineer (R&D) salary in Chicago, IL

Based on 32 certified H-1B filings in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Lemont, Batavia, Aurora.

Also listed as: Researcher Iii Mechanical Engineering

Median salary$90,063
Middle 50%$90.1k–$95.1k
vs. national median+0%comparison median $90,063
Filings32FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $61,398 and $136,119.
PercentileSalary
10th$68,610
25th$90,063
50th (median)$90,063
75th$95,100
90th$109,922

Salary by year

Median salary

$70k $85k $100k FY2021: median $79,394 (21 filings) FY2022: median $79,030 (16 filings) FY2023: median $82,451 (18 filings) FY2024: median $95,099 (14 filings) FY2025: median $90,063 (22 filings) FY2026: median $94,486 (10 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 5 filings FY20 FY2021: 21 filings FY21 FY2022: 16 filings FY22 FY2023: 18 filings FY23 FY2024: 14 filings FY24 FY2025: 22 filings FY25 FY2026: 10 filings FY26 22
Shaded: FY2025–FY2026, the years behind the figures above. Median shown for years with at least 10 filings. FY2026 covers Q1–Q3 only.
Show as table
Fiscal yearMedianP25P75Filings
FY2020–––5
FY2021$79,394$63,627$84,35721
FY2022$79,030$63,213$80,26716
FY2023$82,451$66,175$83,48118
FY2024$95,099$83,063$106,49614
FY2025$90,063$90,063$95,09922
FY2026$94,486$90,063$95,08510

Cost of living

Chicago's median Mechanical Engineer (R&D) salary of $90,063 is worth about $86,900 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Chicago = 103.6).

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
UChicago Argonne$90,06325
Fermi Forward Discovery Grouptoo few6

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I too few 7
Mid-level · Level II $90,063 17
Senior · Level III too few 5
Expert · Level IV too few 2

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Mid-level · Level II$70,346$90,06317

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.