Healthcare AI Researcher.
Chicago.
$222,000
median salary, 6% above the national average
$174,000 to $289,000. Last updated August 2026.
Get the job.
Data points to own the conversation.
Chicago is 7% more expensive than the national average. For Healthcare AI Researchers, that shakes out to a median of $222,000, with the full range spanning $174,000 to $289,000. Compensation reflects specialization depth, production deployment scale, and the maturity of the AI systems being built. Know the range before you walk in. 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 Healthcare AI Researcher in Chicago, 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 $83,240 for Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists (SOC 19-1042) in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metropolitan area, based on 3,810 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$64,500
25th percentile
$65,660
Median
$83,240
75th percentile
$104,700
90th percentile
$143,510
Workers surveyed
3,810
Why this differs from the estimate above. The Orbyt estimate of $222,000 is 167% higher than this published figure. That is usually not an error in either number: BLS reports by occupation code, and Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists covers a different population than the Healthcare AI Researcher title as it is typically advertised. Both are shown, unreconciled, so you can judge which one describes the job you mean.
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists (SOC 19-1042) rather than Healthcare AI Researcher specifically. The Chicago 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 19-1042Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $200,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$144,000
to $178,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$189,000
to $233,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$244,000
to $289,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$278,000
to $344,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $65,000 to the total package.
Base
$222,000
Equity
$38,000
Bonus
$23,000
Signing
$4,000
Estimated total: $287,000
How Chicago compares.
Chicago, IL
$222,000
Cost of living: 7% above average
National Average
$210,000
Chicago is $12,000 above
Healthcare AI Researcher salary by city.
Salary by role in Chicago.
What you should know.
The Healthcare AI Researcher landscape in Chicago is not what most salary sites will tell you. Chicago's economy is anchored by finance, manufacturing, and a rapidly expanding tech sector. The city has become a major hub for fintech, enterprise SaaS, and e-commerce. With lower living costs than coastal cities and a deep talent pool from top universities, Chicago offers strong salary to cost of living ratios for professionals across industries. Compensation reflects specialization depth, production deployment scale, and the maturity of the AI systems being built. Healthcare AI Researchers who have shipped models serving millions of users command the highest premiums. Employer type matters significantly: AI labs and foundation model companies pay 20% to 40% more than enterprises adopting AI for internal use.
Entry-level Healthcare AI Researchers start near $164,000. Mid-career professionals with three to five years of experience reach $210,000 to $273,000. Senior-level roles command $269,000 to $326,000. Management transitions to director-level positions offer $347,000 and above. In Chicago, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity at top-tier companies adds 30% to 60% above base salary. Annual bonuses of 15% to 25% are standard. Signing bonuses of $25,000 to $75,000 are common when changing roles. Refresher equity grants vest annually. Relocation packages and executive benefits like financial planning are typical. And on the tax side: illinois has a flat 4.95% state income tax. Chicago does not levy a separate city income tax, making the overall burden moderate compared to coastal metros. When someone quotes you $222,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Reference the Bay Area or NYC salary band for your role, then negotiate a modest discount. Chicago employers routinely offer 85 to 90% of coastal pay. The range for Healthcare AI Researchers in Chicago runs from $174,000 to $289,000. 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?
- An AI Risk Analytics Engineer in Chicago earns $221,000 (0% more)
- The highest-paying role in Chicago is CTO at $327,000
- See all ai healthcare roles tracked in Orbyt Intelligence
Common questions.
Healthcare AI Researcher salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Chicago.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Healthcare AI Researchers in Chicago.
Related tools.
Do you work as a healthcare ai researcher in Chicago?
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.
"Healthcare AI Researcher Salary in Chicago, IL." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/healthcare-ai-researcher/chicago
Want this data on your site? Embed the salary widget. One script tag, free forever.
Related tools