Average Operating Engineers And Other Construction Equipment Operators Salary in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Operating Engineers And Other Construction Equipment Operators in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN earn a median annual salary of $103,100, which is +72.3% compared to the national median. There are 7,930 workers employed locally in this occupation.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey, May 2025 estimates for Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN (metro area).
Local wage range
- 10th
- $58,060
- 25th
- $78,580
- Median
- $103,100
- 75th
- $117,350
- 90th
- $124,160
All values are percentiles of annual wages.
This local range is the useful part of the page. The median tells you the center of the market in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, while the percentile band shows how compressed or wide the local pay distribution actually is.
Cost-of-living context
Services: 83.6%
Rents: 112.0%
Comparable metros for this occupation
| Metro | Median annual wage | Compare | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $124,990 | Compare | 400 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $124,750 | Compare | 4,080 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $124,340 | Compare | 1,360 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI | $117,630 | Compare | 1,430 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $105,080 | Compare | 710 |
| Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA | $103,060 | Compare | 260 |
The point of this table is not random nearby places. It is to show the other labor markets where this same occupation looks stronger or weaker on the same OEWS release.
Top occupations in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
| Occupation | Median annual wage | LQ |
|---|---|---|
| Radiologists | $479,910 | N/A |
| Cardiologists | $475,590 | 0.31 |
| Surgeons, All Other | $462,620 | 0.46 |
| Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric | $446,510 | 0.13 |
| Dermatologists | $435,750 | N/A |
| Chief Executives | $344,960 | 0.61 |
| Physicians, Pathologists | $336,660 | N/A |
| Airline Pilots, Copilots, And Flight Engineers | $293,490 | 2.11 |
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN has salary data for 726 occupations. The highest-paid occupation in this area is Radiologists.
Trend for Operating Engineers And Other Construction Equipment Operators in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Historical trend data is not yet available for this occupation in this area.
Outlook and page notes
Nationally, Operating Engineers And Other Construction Equipment Operators are projected to change by +3.6% from 2024 to 2034, with 41,900 annual openings.
Use this page to answer three separate questions: what the occupation pays here, how large the local market is, and whether this market is unusually concentrated for the occupation.
For metro pages in particular, read long-term trend rows as directional until the area comparability layer is fully wired. OEWS area definitions can change over time, and that matters more at the metro level than at the state level.