Plumber Salary in Chicago, IL 2026,
$103,380 Median | BLS + Market Data

Chicago plumbers earn a BLS MSA median of $103,380/yr ($49.70/hr), about 3.4% above the Illinois statewide median and roughly 62% above the national plumber figure. The metro range runs from about $53,960 (P10) to $127,200 (P90), with union commercial work at the top.

Chicago is one of the most heavily unionized plumbing markets in the country. UA Local 130, among the largest plumbers' locals in North America, sets a high negotiated scale with full benefits for commercial and high-rise work, and Illinois' statewide IDPH licensing keeps supply tight. Both push the metro median far above the $63,800 national figure.

Chicago is served by UA Local 130. Union journeyman scale plus the fringe package (pension, health, annuity) sits at the top of the metro distribution, the P75 is $122,540 and P90 $127,200, and overtime on downtown commercial projects adds to that. Check Local 130 for the current negotiated package.

Illinois plumbing licenses are issued statewide by IDPH: register as an apprentice under a licensed plumber's sponsorship, complete the required training years, then pass the Illinois plumbing exam. Most Chicago commercial careers run through the UA Local 130 apprenticeship, which pays wages and benefits while you train.

Chicago apprentices earn about $54,900 at the BLS-aligned median (near the metro P10 of $53,960), and Local 130 apprentices earn a rising percentage of journeyman scale each year plus benefits. On licensure, pay jumps toward the $103,380 metro median, roughly a $48,000 increase.

Chicago's $103,380 median puts it among the top plumber markets in America, far ahead of the $63,800 national median. Even high-cost coastal metros rarely match Local 130's negotiated scale, and Chicago's cost of living is meaningfully lower, so real purchasing power for a Chicago union plumber is arguably the best in the trade.

The $53,960–$127,200 spread reflects two markets in one metro: open-shop residential and service work in the suburbs fills the lower percentiles, while union commercial, high-rise and industrial work compresses near the top, the gap between P75 ($122,540) and P90 ($127,200) is small because so many union plumbers earn the same negotiated scale.

The BLS figures are base wages only. Union plumbers add a substantial fringe package (pension, annuity, health) on top of scale, and downtown project schedules commonly add overtime at 1.5×–2×. Counting fringes, total compensation for a Local 130 journeyman runs well above the published median.