Start with the answer
Forensic Science Technicians pay in Illinois and Maine
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Forensic Science Technicians is $124,790 per year in Illinois. It is $70,870 per year in Maine. Illinois is 76.1% above Maine on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 19-4092 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 370 wage and salary jobs in Illinois and 40 in Maine. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings