Corporate Counsel.
Wichita.
$150,000
median salary, 19% below the national average
$117,000 to $196,000. Last updated August 2026.
Get the job.
Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Corporate Counsel offer in Wichita, KS, here is the reality: $117,000 to $196,000, with $150,000 as the midpoint. 19% below the national average. Corporate Counsel compensation is driven by firm tier, practice area (M&A and private equity command the top of the market), and year of bar admission. Do not accept the first number. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Corporate Counsel in Wichita, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $121,510 for Lawyers (SOC 23-1011) in the Wichita, KS metropolitan area, based on 690 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$76,380
25th percentile
$88,150
Median
$121,510
75th percentile
$151,140
90th percentile
$209,200
Workers surveyed
690
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Lawyers (SOC 23-1011) rather than Corporate Counsel specifically. The Wichita range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 23-1011Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $135,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$98,000
to $120,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$128,000
to $158,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$165,000
to $195,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$188,000
to $233,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $38,000 to the total package.
Base
$150,000
Equity
$21,000
Bonus
$14,000
Signing
$3,000
Estimated total: $188,000
How Wichita compares.
Wichita, KS
$150,000
Cost of living: 18% below average
National Average
$185,000
Wichita is $35,000 below
Corporate Counsel salary by city.
Salary by role in Wichita.
What you should know.
The Corporate Counsel landscape in Wichita is not what most salary sites will tell you. Wichita is the air capital of the world, home to major aerospace manufacturers including Spirit AeroSystems, Textron Aviation, and Airbus. The city's engineering talent pool is deep, and the extremely low cost of living means aerospace salaries deliver exceptional purchasing power. Corporate Counsel compensation is driven by firm tier, practice area (M&A and private equity command the top of the market), and year of bar admission. Base salary carries most of the total compensation, with bonuses adding roughly 15% in a typical year. Within law, firm tier and practice area specialization drive the steepest variance, with Big Law and top boutique firms setting the ceiling.
Corporate Counsels progress Associate → Senior Associate → Counsel → Partner over 8 to 10 years at firms; in-house tracks progress Associate → Senior Counsel → Managing Counsel → General Counsel. Partner-track decisions happen around year 7 to 8. In Wichita, your dollars stretch further. Cost of living runs 18% below the national average, which means even a median salary buys a stronger lifestyle.
Base salary is not the full picture. Total compensation for Corporate Counsels runs roughly $213K at median when factoring base + typical bonus (~15% of base). Base salary carries most of the compensation; benefits (healthcare, 401(k) match, PTO) add an estimated 15–25% in imputed value on top. In law, firm tier dictates total compensation structure — Big Law associates earn predictable lockstep salaries; in-house counsel typically trades lower base for equity. And on the tax side: kansas has a top income tax rate of 5.7%. Wichita has no city income tax. The moderate state rate combined with very low housing costs creates strong net pay. When someone quotes you $150,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Highlight aerospace engineering expertise. Wichita manufacturers pay competitive national rates for specialized aviation and defense engineering talent. The range for Corporate Counsels in Wichita runs from $117,000 to $196,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- A Route Optimization AI Specialist in Wichita earns $151,000 (1% more)
- The highest-paying role in Wichita is CTO at $244,000
Common questions.
Corporate Counsel salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Wichita.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Corporate Counsels in Wichita.
Related tools.
Do you work as a corporate counsel in Wichita?
Your individual figure is never published. Submissions appear only as aggregate percentiles, and nothing is shown for a role and city until at least five people have reported. It is stored against your account, which is what keeps the dataset clean.
Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Corporate Counsel Salary in Wichita, KS." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/corporate-counsel/wichita
Want this data on your site? Embed the salary widget. One script tag, free forever.
Related tools