Can a Medical Lab Scientist afford to live in Chicago?

Comfortable32% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
Medical Lab Scientist · Chicago
$75,418
Income tax (~25% effective)
United States
– $18,859
Take-home pay
$4,713/mo
$56,559
Living costs (1 person)
$3,220/mo · derived
– $38,640
Savings potential
$1,493/mo · 32% of take-home
$17,919

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 Medical Lab Scientist, adjusted for Chicago.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~25%). 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.