Talent Maps / Chicago / Architects

Chicago Architect Talent Map (2026)

What architects earn in Chicago, which firms employ them and the airport, stadium, museum and transit projects shaping the market.

Hiring architects in Chicago?

A talent map shows where a group of professionals works, what they are paid and who else is trying to hire them. This one covers architects in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro area. Pay figures come from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey (May 2025), and firm and market data from 2025 and 2026. Our Chicago architectural recruiters update it as new data comes out. See also our Chicago CAD designer, structural engineer and civil engineer talent maps.

$81,790Median architect pay in metro ChicagoBLS, May 2025

$17,490How far Chicago’s architect median sits below the national medianBLS, May 2025

$76,570Median interior designer pay in Chicago, above the national medianBLS, May 2025

2033Year O’Hare’s Global Terminal, designed by Studio ORD, is due to openChicago Department of Aviation

$750MChicago Fire stadium at The 78, designed by GenslerChicago Fire FC

1935The year Perkins&Will was founded in ChicagoPerkins&Will

Architect salaries in Chicago

The median architect in metro Chicago earns $81,790 a year, almost the same as the Illinois median of $81,780 and $17,490 below the national median of $99,280. Chicago pays less than Dallas-Fort Worth, where the median is $93,840, and Atlanta at $103,330. The middle half earn between $65,820 and $105,090, and the top 10% earn $130,990 or more.

Annual pay percentile	Chicago metro	Illinois	United States
10th percentile	$60,750	$59,890	$62,300
25th percentile	$65,820	$65,110	$77,960
Median	$81,790	$81,780	$99,280
75th percentile	$105,090	$105,090	$126,550
90th percentile	$130,990	$130,670	$161,420

Architects, except landscape and naval (SOC 17-1011). Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025, via O*NET OnLine.

Related roles in Chicago: landscape architects earn a median of $66,830, interior designers $76,570 and architectural and civil drafters $58,800. Interior designers are the one group here paid above the national median, which is $67,190.

Where Chicago’s architects work

Founded in Chicago

Perkins&Will was founded in Chicago in 1935 by Lawrence Perkins and Philip Will Jr. and designed O’Hare’s Terminal 5. SOM, a Chicago-based firm formed in 1936, designed the Sears Tower and John Hancock Center.

SCB, founded in 1931, has grown into a 350+ person practice with offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, Seattle and Los Angeles.

Chicago design studios

Studio Gang, founded and led by Jeanne Gang, works from Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Paris. Ross Barney Architects and Juan Gabriel Moreno Architects (JGMA) are on the Concourse D design team.

Civic Projects Architecture, also Chicago-based, worked on the Obama Presidential Center exhibitions.

National firms with Chicago offices

Gensler, which has a Chicago office, designed the 360 North Green tower in Fulton Market and is lead architect for the Chicago Fire stadium. AECOM’s Chicago Buildings + Places team offers architecture and interiors.

HNTB designed Ryan Field with Perkins&Will, and Corgan is part of Studio ORD at O’Hare.

Owners

The Chicago Department of Aviation, the CTA, Northwestern University, the Obama Foundation and developer Related Midwest, which leads The 78 and the quantum park, hire architects and manage design contracts.

Where the talent sits: Chicago submarkets

Downtown Chicago

Design studiosHigh-rise

Chicago-founded firms such as Perkins&Will, SOM and SCB, and Bally’s casino tower in River West.

Fulton Market and the West Loop

WorkplaceMixed use

Gensler’s 360 North Green tower and SCB’s mixed-use work in the former meatpacking district.

O’Hare

Aviation

Concourse D (SOM with Ross Barney, JGMA and Arup), Concourse E (SOM) and the Global Terminal (Studio ORD).

South Side and Jackson Park

CulturalCivic

The Obama Presidential Center, opened in June 2026, and the quantum computing park at the former South Works site.

South Loop and Evanston

Sports

The Chicago Fire stadium at The 78, and Northwestern’s new Ryan Field in Evanston.

What’s shaping the Chicago architecture market

O’Hare. Studio ORD, a joint venture of SCB, Studio Gang, Corgan, Milhouse Engineering and Construction and STLarchitects, designed the Global Terminal, which is due to open in 2033. SOM designed Concourse D with Ross Barney Architects, JGMA and Arup. The 19-gate concourse is due in late 2028, and SOM is also designing Concourse E.
Chicago Fire stadium. Gensler is lead architect on the $750 million, 22,000-seat stadium at The 78, which broke ground on March 3, 2026, and is due to open ahead of the 2028 MLS season.
Obama Presidential Center. The $850 million campus in Jackson Park, designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, opened to the public on June 19, 2026. Moody Nolan designed its sports complex.
Ryan Field. Northwestern’s 35,000-seat stadium, designed by HNTB and Perkins&Will, opened on October 2, 2026.
Bally’s casino. The casino is due to open in early 2027, but Bally’s paused the hotel, events center and restaurants in August 2026.
Bears stadium. The Bears are weighing Hammond, Indiana, and Arlington Heights. No site had been chosen as of October 2026.

The talent pipeline

Illinois Tech. Illinois Tech’s NAAB-accredited B.Arch and M.Arch were reaccredited in 2021, with the next visit in 2029.
University of Illinois Chicago. UIC’s M.Arch is NAAB-accredited. Its last visit was in 2024, and the next is in 2032.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. UIUC offers two NAAB-accredited M.Arch tracks, both visited in 2023.
Licensing. Architects are licensed by IDFPR. A design firm offering architecture in Illinois must have a resident licensed architect in each Illinois office.

What this means if you’re hiring

Expect pay comparisons with other metros. Chicago’s median is $12,050 below Dallas-Fort Worth’s and $21,540 below Atlanta’s, and national firms here know it.
Aviation work runs to 2034. ORDNext keeps architects with airport portfolios busy for years.
Post the pay range. Illinois employers with 15 or more employees must list pay in job postings, so your range is visible to every candidate.
Recruit from IIT and UIC. Both run NAAB-accredited programs inside the city.

Need architects in Chicago?

Apollo Technical has recruited for architecture and engineering firms since 2010. Our recruiting teams place architects, project architects and designers on a contract, contract-to-hire and direct hire basis.

Call 847.994.3030 or see our Chicago architectural recruiters page.

Hire architects in Chicago

Frequently asked questions

How much do architects make in Chicago?

The median architect salary in metro Chicago is $81,790 a year, according to May 2025 BLS data. The middle half earn between $65,820 and $105,090, and the top 10% earn $130,990 or more.

Do architects in Chicago earn more than the national median?

No. Chicago’s median of $81,790 is $17,490 below the national median of $99,280. Dallas-Fort Worth ($93,840) and Atlanta ($103,330) both pay more. See our Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta architect talent maps.

Who is designing O’Hare’s new Global Terminal?

Studio ORD, a joint venture of SCB, Studio Gang, Corgan, Milhouse Engineering and Construction and STLarchitects. The terminal is due to open in 2033.

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