Chicago general counsel pay now has a benchmark, and it has seven figures. BarkerGilmore’s new Chicago report puts median total compensation for GCs at $1,074,750, more than double managing counsel at $487,250. Senior counsel sit at $353,000. A third of respondents work in financial services, so weigh the numbers with that in mind.
Loyalty runs high: about two-thirds say the odds they start a job search are low or very low. Still, a third say high or very high, and John Gilmore says the trick is to look beyond the title to scope and company size. No wonder there are always fresh Chicago legal jobs. For the national picture, see our in-house salaries guide.
“Across the full sample, median total compensation is $1,074,750 for General Counsel, $487,250 for Managing Counsel, and $353,000 for Senior Counsel. The findings also reveal considerable variation in compensation across organization revenue levels, reinforcing the importance of company scale when evaluating legal compensation.”
Read: BarkerGilmore Releases 2026 Chicago In-House Legal Leadership Compensation Report at BarkerGilmore