High paying science jobs in Champaign-Urbana, IL

Every science occupation below is ranked by its median annual wage in Champaign-Urbana, IL. Read the percentile range, not just the median: the gap between the 10th and 90th inside a single science job is usually wider than the gap between two different ones, so where you land in a field matters more than which field you pick.

Cost of living: prices in Champaign-Urbana, IL run 7.3% below the national average (2024), so a Champaign-Urbana, IL salary is worth about 1.08× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order.

Local wage estimates are suppressed more often than state ones — BLS withholds any figure too few local employers report — so an occupation missing here simply has no published local estimate.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find science jobs in Champaign-Urbana, IL

OccupationMedian, Champaign-Urbana, IL · Employed

1Social Scientists and Related Workers, All Other$102,110
Bachelor's degree
$74,530 – $141,36040
2Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists$85,030
Doctoral or professional degree
$58,180 – $144,84060
3Occupational Health and Safety Specialists$82,750
Bachelor's degree
$53,100 – $129,42070
4Urban and Regional Planners$81,840
Master's degree
$55,300 – $131,90050
5School Psychologists$76,460
Master's degree
$42,020 – $88,74060
6Clinical and Counseling Psychologists$75,520
Doctoral or professional degree
$64,030 – $174,800130
7Biological Scientists, All Other$70,870
Bachelor's degree
$44,990 – $161,890140
8Chemists$67,310
Bachelor's degree
$51,480 – $133,56080
9Microbiologists$66,560
Bachelor's degree
$55,500 – $86,96060
10Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health$65,360
Bachelor's degree
$40,370 – $105,90090
11Conservation Scientists$64,470
Bachelor's degree
$40,160 – $161,89040
12Soil and Plant Scientists$64,460
Bachelor's degree
$55,000 – $115,21090
13Biological Technicians$64,270
Bachelor's degree
$41,940 – $79,05080
14Agricultural Technicians$63,080
Associate's degree
$45,620 – $64,67070
15Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health$51,570
Associate's degree
$50,960 – $70,84070

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianChampaign-Urbana, IL	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Social Scientists and Related Workers, All OtherBachelor's degree	$102,110	$74,530 – $141,360	40
2	Medical Scientists, Except EpidemiologistsDoctoral or professional degree	$85,030	$58,180 – $144,840	60
3	Occupational Health and Safety SpecialistsBachelor's degree	$82,750	$53,100 – $129,420	70
4	Urban and Regional PlannersMaster's degree	$81,840	$55,300 – $131,900	50
5	School PsychologistsMaster's degree	$76,460	$42,020 – $88,740	60
6	Clinical and Counseling PsychologistsDoctoral or professional degree	$75,520	$64,030 – $174,800	130
7	Biological Scientists, All OtherBachelor's degree	$70,870	$44,990 – $161,890	140
8	ChemistsBachelor's degree	$67,310	$51,480 – $133,560	80
9	MicrobiologistsBachelor's degree	$66,560	$55,500 – $86,960	60
10	Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including HealthBachelor's degree	$65,360	$40,370 – $105,900	90
11	Conservation ScientistsBachelor's degree	$64,470	$40,160 – $161,890	40
12	Soil and Plant ScientistsBachelor's degree	$64,460	$55,000 – $115,210	90
13	Biological TechniciansBachelor's degree	$64,270	$41,940 – $79,050	80
14	Agricultural TechniciansAssociate's degree	$63,080	$45,620 – $64,670	70
15	Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including HealthAssociate's degree	$51,570	$50,960 – $70,840	70

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in Champaign-Urbana, IL. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for Champaign-Urbana, IL

Other metro areas in IL

By field in Champaign-Urbana, IL

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in Champaign-Urbana, IL to rank honestly.

High paying science jobs in Champaign-Urbana, IL

More for Champaign-Urbana, IL

Other metro areas in IL

By field in Champaign-Urbana, IL

Without a degree

High paying science jobs in each state