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What does a Urban and Regional Planners salary really buy you in Illinois?
Illinois is near the US average cost of livingData: BLS OEWS 2025 + BEA Regional Price Parities 2022 • Updated 2026-05-19
Illinois's Regional Price Parity (RPP) is 101.3, meaning prices are 1.3% higher the national average. A Urban and Regional Planners earning $91,360 in Illinois has the equivalent purchasing power of $90,187 in an average-cost US state.
Every dollar goes further in low-cost states. Here is how each salary percentile compares after adjusting for Illinois's cost of living.
| Percentile | Nominal Salary | COL-Adjusted | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th Percentile (P10) | $56,190 | $55,468 | $-721 |
| 25th Percentile (P25) | $74,230 | $73,277 | $-952 |
| Median (P50) | $91,360 | $90,187 | $-1,172 |
| 75th Percentile (P75) | $113,530 | $112,073 | $-1,456 |
| 90th Percentile (P90) | $145,660 | $143,790 | $-1,869 |
Illinois's cost of living is close to the national average, so $91,360 keeps most of its value at $90,187 in real terms. Location choice here is more about career opportunities than cost arbitrage.
With an RPP of 101.3, Illinois is within a few percent of the national cost-of-living baseline. Salary adjustment for Urban and Regional Planners is therefore minor — what you earn is close to what you'd keep in real purchasing power.
After adjusting for Illinois's cost of living, $91,360 nominal nets out to $90,188 in real purchasing power — a small 1.3% loss. The state's cost profile is close enough to average that COL alone shouldn't drive location decisions for this Urban and Regional Planners.
Illinois sits at #15 of 51 states for Urban and Regional Planners COL-adjusted salary — comfortably above the national midpoint.
Where does Urban and Regional Planners salary stretch the furthest? Top 10 states ranked by COL-adjusted median salary.
Illinois ranks #15 out of 51 states for Urban and Regional Planners after cost-of-living adjustment.
How much do you actually take home? See Urban and Regional Planners take-home pay in Illinois after taxes →
A Urban and Regional Planners in Illinois earns a median salary of $91,360 per year. After adjusting for Illinois's cost of living (RPP=101.3), the real purchasing power is $90,187 — a -1.3% difference.
Illinois's cost of living is 1.3% higher than the national average according to the BEA Regional Price Parities (2022). The RPP index for Illinois is 101.3 (US average = 100).
Regional Price Parities (RPPs) are price indexes published by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) that measure differences in price levels across states. They are expressed as a percentage of the national average (US = 100). Higher RPP means higher cost of living.
The adjusted salary is calculated as: Nominal Salary x (100 / RPP). For a Urban and Regional Planners in Illinois: $91,360 x (100 / 101.3) = $90,187. This represents what the salary would be worth in a state with average living costs.
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