QA Engineer salary in Chicago, IL

Based on 1,203 certified H-1B filings in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Schaumburg, Naperville, Deerfield, Aurora, Lisle.

Also listed as: Software Tester, Test Automation Engineer

Median salary$99,237
Middle 50%$83k–$116.1k
vs. national median−6%comparison median $105,602
Filings1,203FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $65,520 and $164,996.
PercentileSalary
10th$82,368
25th$83,000
50th (median)$99,237
75th$116,085
90th$134,000

Salary by year

Median salary

$60k $85k $110k FY2020: median $77,438 (469 filings) FY2021: median $81,421 (306 filings) FY2022: median $90,397 (534 filings) FY2023: median $94,182 (585 filings) FY2024: median $92,200 (656 filings) FY2025: median $90,400 (712 filings) FY2026: median $104,728 (491 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 469 filings FY20 FY2021: 306 filings FY21 FY2022: 534 filings FY22 FY2023: 585 filings FY23 FY2024: 656 filings FY24 FY2025: 712 filings FY25 FY2026: 491 filings FY26 712
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$77,438$77,438$95,555469
FY2021$81,421$75,754$96,750306
FY2022$90,397$76,045$107,983534
FY2023$94,182$79,000$109,408585
FY2024$92,200$82,202$110,000656
FY2025$90,400$82,368$116,085712
FY2026$104,728$88,088$121,389491

Cost of living

Chicago's median QA Engineer salary of $99,237 is worth about $95,800 at national average prices.

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

Compared with all workers here

All Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers in the Chicago, IL area earned a median of $105,580 in May 2025 (5,010 employed). The H-1B median here is $99,237, 6% lower.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
Cognizant$99,237182
Capgemini America$117,01157
Slk America$82,36834
GlobalLogic$88,08822
Ibase Operations$82,36820
Chicago Mercantile Exchange$120,00018
Tata Consultancy Services$82,36818
Cigniti Technologies$82,36816
Valuelabs$101,15216
Medline Industries$128,12511

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

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $71,427 102
Mid-level · Level II $88,088 584
Senior · Level III $104,728 291
Expert · Level IV $125,074 218

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$71,427$71,427102
Mid-level · Level II$82,368$88,088584
Senior · Level III$104,728$104,728291
Expert · Level IV$121,389$125,074218

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.