Principal Researcher Salary in Chicago, Illinois

How much does a Principal Researcher make in Chicago, IL?

As of April 01, 2025, the average annual salary for a Principal Researcher in Chicago, IL is $170,101. According to Salary.com, salaries can range from a low of $137,494 to a high of $201,860, with most professionals earning between $153,033 and $186,725.

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Salary range for a Principal Researcher

$153,033 to $186,725

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Principal Researcher

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Job Openings for Principal Researcher in Chicago, IL

What does a Principal Researcher do?

Common responsibilities of a Principal Researcher

Provide product usability, evaluation and support to product development teams, including the analysis and investigation of applications/systems including tactile methods, visual graphics, web, multimedia, voice response and conversational user interaction.

November 14, 2022

Drive change and help the organization look around corners by communicating research findings that are convincing and actionable for product decision-makers.

December 20, 2022

Assist other teams and customers with vulnerability research and impact analysis of breaking issues.

January 19, 2023

Act as a coach and mentor, as well as leading other researchers toward innovative and creative thinking when approaching research challenges.

February 07, 2023

Develop and manage both new and ongoing policy research projects from design and analysis to the presentation and communication of findings.

February 20, 2023

Leading research activities to align with and inform our business objectives, and providing oversight and guidance to others who assist these activities.

April 06, 2023

Design and moderate labs, guiding participants through a set of tasks and prompting them for candid, relevant feedback.

April 27, 2023

Manage day to day work of performing experiments and evaluations to quantify and validate improvements made to existing systems.

May 09, 2023

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Principal Researcher Salary By Experience Levels in Chicago, IL

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RELEVANT JOB EXPERIENCE

Length of experience is a pay differentiator. Those with greater experience may have an advantage in negotiating salary. For those with less experience, other factors such as education or special skills could impact your pay. Please visit Professional Salary Report for more details.

Principal Researcher Salary By Level of Education in Chicago, IL

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LEVEL OF EDUCATION

Depending on the job, educational levels may have a significant impact on pay levels. Be informed and understand how things like education and certifications can help to increase potential earnings for the career you are interested in. Please visit Professional Salary Report for more details.

Average Salary Range for Principal Researcher in Chicago, IL

Average Base Salary

Core compensation

153033

186725

170101

Average Total Cash Compensation

Includes base and annual incentives

158609

196786

177680

What is the average salary for Principal Researcher in 2025?

These charts show the average base salary (core compensation), as well as the average total cash compensation for the job of Principal Researcher in Chicago, IL. The base salary for Principal Researcher ranges from $153,033 to $186,725 with the average base salary of $170,101. The total cash compensation, which includes base, and annual incentives, can vary anywhere from $158,609 to $196,786 with the average total cash compensation of $177,680.

View Average Salary for Principal Researcher as table

	Average Salary	Average Salary Range
Base Salary	$170,101	$153,033 - $186,725
Bonus	$7,579	$5,576 - $10,061
Total Pay	$177,680	$158,609 - $196,786

* Base Salary represents gross income before taxes and deductions. It does not include additional pay such as benefits, bonuses, profit sharing or commissions.

* Total Pay combines base salary, bonuses, profit sharing, tips, commissions, overtime pay and other forms of cash earnings, as applicable for this job.

Principal Researcher Salary Near Chicago, IL

CITY, STATE	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL
CITY, STATE Cicero, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $153,033 - $186,725	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL 0%
CITY, STATE Oak Park, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $153,033 - $186,725	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL 0%
CITY, STATE Oak Lawn, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $152,855 - $186,508	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL
CITY, STATE Evanston, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $152,974 - $186,653	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL
CITY, STATE Skokie, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $152,974 - $186,653	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL
CITY, STATE Arlington Heights, IL	AVERAGE SALARY RANGE $149,834 - $182,822	COMPARE TO Chicago, IL

See salaries for Principal Researcher in locations close to Chicago, IL. Pay for the same job may vary based on the location and on the location and on other factors such as the size of company, the industry, and other local conditions.

About Chicago, Illinois

Chicago (/ʃɪˈkɑːɡoʊ/ (listen), locally also /-ˈkɔː-/), officially the City of Chicago, is the most populous city in Illinois, as well as the third most populous city in the United States. With an estimated population of 2,716,450 (2017), it is the most populous city in the Midwest. Chicago is the principal city of the Chicago metropolitan area, often referred to as Chicagoland, and the county seat of Cook County, the second most populous county in the United States. The metropolitan area, at nearly 10 million people, is the third-largest in the United States, and the fourth largest in North A...

Source: Wikipedia (as of 04/11/2019). Read more from Wikipedia

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The Principal Researcher job could be listed using titles that are not exactly the same, but actually are for the same or very similar job. Here are some job titles in Chicago, IL that might be a good fit for the type of job and salary you are looking for.

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