Waiters and Waitresses salary in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Waiters and Waitresses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 Illinois tax rules.
Take-home estimate: single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in Illinois; city and local taxes are not included. Full breakdown below.
The figures
The median Waiters and Waitresses in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area earns $31,200 a year ($15.00 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN earn between $31,200 and $35,800 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $31,200 or less and the top 10 percent earn $50,410 or more. BLS estimates 54,100 Waiters and Waitresses jobs in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN area — 11.986 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 0.82 (below the national concentration). That is 2.4% of all Waiters and Waitresses employment in the United States (2,270,910 jobs nationally). By employment, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN is the #4 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Waiters and Waitresses. In aggregate, Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN earn about $1.93 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $29,205.12 a year, so the aggregate take-home of Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN Waiters and Waitresses is about $1.58 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 6.3% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN stands #19 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Waiters and Waitresses. By employment, Waiters and Waitresses is the #14 largest of the 30 covered occupations in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. Placed against the national distribution for Waiters and Waitresses, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN median of $31,200 falls between the national 25th percentile ($27,750) and the national median ($35,230). Across all occupations, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN median is $54,720 a year — Waiters and Waitresses pay is 43.0% below the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $17.14 | $35,650 |
| 10th percentile | $15.00 | $31,200 |
| 25th percentile | $15.00 | $31,200 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $15.00 | $31,200 |
| 75th percentile | $17.21 | $35,800 |
| 90th percentile | $24.24 | $50,410 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN earn 1.6 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($50,410 against $31,200). The middle half spans $4,600 — from $31,200 to $35,800. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($24.24) is 1.62 times the 10th ($15.00). In the upper half of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $35,800 takes home $29,317.94 and the 90th percentile wage of $50,410 takes home $40,333.96 — $11,016.02 more net for $14,610 more gross. Against the median take-home of $25,849.72, the top decile keeps 1.56 times as much. The mean wage of $35,650 sits 14.3% above the median: higher-paid Waiters and Waitresses pull the average up in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. Among the 30 covered occupations in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, Waiters and Waitresses ranks #30 by median pay. In the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN wage ladder of covered occupations, Waiters and Waitresses sits just below Fast Food and Counter Workers at $34,630. Waiters and Waitresses accounts for 1.2% of all employment in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area. The average covered metro employs 39,482 Waiters and Waitresses; Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN employs 1.4 times that.
Take-home pay on the median wage in Illinois
Single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in Illinois; city and local taxes are not included:
| Gross pay (annual) | $31,200.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $1,564.00 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $1,934.40 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $452.40 |
| Illinois income tax | $1,399.61 |
| Total deductions | $5,350.28 |
| Net pay (annual) | $25,849.72 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $994.22 |
| Total deduction rate | 17.15% of gross |
At the median, $25,849.72 of the $31,200 gross is kept ($994.22 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 17.15%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 17.15% at the 10th percentile, 17.15% at the 25th percentile, 18.11% at the 75th percentile, 19.99% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $3,468.22 on a gross rise of $4,600.
The same engine at the other published points of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($31,200) | $25,849.72 | $994.22 | 17.15% |
| 25th percentile ($31,200) | $25,849.72 | $994.22 | 17.15% |
| Median ($31,200) | $25,849.72 | $994.22 | 17.15% |
| 75th percentile ($35,800) | $29,317.94 | $1,127.61 | 18.11% |
| 90th percentile ($50,410) | $40,333.96 | $1,551.31 | 19.99% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $25,849.72 a year at the 10th percentile to $40,333.96 at the 90th — a spread of $14,484.24 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN median wage of $54,720 takes home $43,583.42 a year ($1,676.29 per paycheck, deduction rate 20.35%). The Waiters and Waitresses median take-home of $25,849.72 sits $17,733.70 (40.7%) below the area-wide median take-home of $43,583.42.
Multi-state metro area. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN also covers parts of Indiana. The take-home estimate above uses Illinois rules — the metro area's primary state. If the job is based in another part of the metro area, the state tax changes: see the Indiana paycheck calculator.
Run your own numbers
Your own withholding depends on your Form W-4, your benefits and your other income — run your exact figures through the calculator:
Against the national median
Nationally, the median Waiters and Waitresses earns $35,230 a year ($16.94 an hour). The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN median of $31,200 is $4,030 (11.4%) below the national median.
The means rank the area the same way: $35,650 a year in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN against $40,060 nationally, a gap of $4,410 (11.0%).
Set against the whole local market, the Waiters and Waitresses 90th percentile of $50,410 is 39% of the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN all-occupations 90th percentile ($130,790), and its 10th percentile of $31,200 is 91% of the area-wide 10th ($34,260).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | $31,200 | $15.00 | $35,650 |
| United States | $35,230 | $16.94 | $40,060 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
$31,200 a year ($15.00 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $35,650 a year. Ranked by median pay, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN stands #19 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $31,200 in Illinois?
About $25,849.72 a year ($994.22 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 17.15% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $35,800, take-home is $29,317.94.
How does pay in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN compare with the national median for Waiters and Waitresses?
The Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN median of $31,200 is $4,030 (11.4%) below the national median of $35,230 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $50,410, against a national 90th percentile of $64,720.
How much do the top 10% of Waiters and Waitresses earn in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
$50,410 a year or more ($24.24 an hour or more), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates.
What is the take-home pay at the 90th percentile for Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
On $50,410 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $40,333.96 a year ($1,551.31 per biweekly paycheck) in Illinois under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 19.99%.
How many Waiters and Waitresses jobs are there in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
BLS estimates 54,100 Waiters and Waitresses jobs in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area — 11.986 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Waiters and Waitresses jobs in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
The location quotient is 0.82 — below the national concentration. A quotient of 1.0 means the occupation's share of local employment equals its national share.
How much does take-home pay vary for Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
From $25,849.72 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($31,200) to $40,333.96 at the 90th ($50,410), under the same single-filer assumptions in Illinois.
What is the total wage bill for Waiters and Waitresses in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
About $1.93 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 54,100 multiplied by the mean wage of $35,650.
Sources and method
Wage data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates (released May 15, 2026), retrieved October 27, 2026 — bls.gov/oes. OEWS figures are survey estimates for May 2025, not job offers. Take-home pay is computed by this site's paycheck engine with 2026 federal and state rules; the method, and what the engine does not model, is documented in the paycheck methodology guide. Estimates only — not tax advice.