Can a Journalist afford to live in Chicago?

Comfortable28% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Journalist · Chicago
$71,532
Income tax (~24% effective)
United States
– $17,517
Take-home pay
$4,501/mo
$54,015
Living costs (1 person)
$3,220/mo · derived
– $38,640
Savings potential
$1,281/mo · 28% of take-home
$15,375

Single professional, after-tax. Salary − tax − living costs = what you could save each year.

Full salary breakdown →Is this a good salary in Chicago? →Compare Chicago with another city →

How we calculated this

• Salary: BLS OES median for Journalist, adjusted for Chicago.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~24%). Official calculator.

• Living costs: derived from cost-of-living index for a single professional.

Planning estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026. Your situation will differ.