§ 03 Trade wages
Painters in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Painters in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro earned a median of $29.68 an hour in May 2025 (BLS OEWS), 25% higher than the national median of $23.75. The middle half earned $23.54 to $46.08. About 5,480 people work in this occupation here. That ranks 15 of 225 metros with a reliable estimate for this trade. These are employee wages, not what a contractor bills you per hour.
BLS OEWS May 2025 · SOC 47-2141
Painters, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
25th pct$23.54per hour
Median$29.68per hour
75th pct$46.08per hour
10th pct$21.42
90th pct$52.80
Mean$34.00
Workers5,480
Your multiplier: ×2.0Median wage × multiplier: $59/hr
OEWS reports what employers pay these workers per hour. A contractor’s bill also covers the business: insurance, licensing, vehicles, tools, office staff, warranty callbacks, unbilled travel time and profit. The wage is a floor for understanding a quote, never a price. You set the multiplier; we publish no typical markup because we have no citable source for one.What else is in a bill for this trade
- Prep time (scraping, patching, priming) often exceeds painting time
- EPA lead-safe certification and containment for pre-1978 homes
- Paint and supplies, sometimes billed separately
BLS OEWS May 2025 · Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN · mean RSE 3.1%Employee wages from the BLS employer survey. Not what a contractor bills.