Biological Scientists, All Other Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $83K, rent takes 27% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,407/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new biological scientists, all others typically earn — is $57K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,391/month. At HUD’s $1,407/month FMR, rent would take 41% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay runs 16% below the national median — $83K here vs. $99K nationally. Cost of living is 6% below the national average, which narrows that gap in real purchasing power.

Illinois pays $83K median vs. the U.S. average of $99K — that’s -16%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 93.85), the purchasing-power equivalent is $88K — below the national median.

The median is $82,640 a year, that works out to about $40 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,520, and experienced biological scientists, all others can clear $134,530. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,203/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,407/month, which eats 27% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Illinois has a Regional Price Parity of 93.85 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median biological scientists, all other salary is worth about $88,055 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.