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Operations Research Analysts pay in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN and Colorado Springs, CO
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Operations Research Analysts is $86,500 per year in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. It is $140,590 per year in Colorado Springs, CO. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN is 38.5% below Colorado Springs, CO on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 15-2031 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 3,680 wage and salary jobs in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN and 170 in Colorado Springs, CO. 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