Start with the answer
Psychiatrists pay in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC and Springfield, IL
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Psychiatrists is $169,850 per year in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC. It is $413,890 per year in Springfield, IL. Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC is 59.0% below Springfield, IL on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 29-1223 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 100 wage and salary jobs in Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC and 40 in Springfield, IL. 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