Linux - Chicago, IL - Average Experience
Salary Report
Information Technology Job
Linux
Administration
United States Location
Chicago - Gary - Kenosha
IL - IN - WI
USA Metropolitan Area
Competitive Position® Salary Report
Data Observed 1/2/25 to 12/31/25
Salary Average
$107,261
Experience Requirement
6 Years and 4 Months
Raise +1 Year
$9,447 at 8.81%
Salary and Number of Jobs
About Salary and Jobs
Salary Range :
At required Experience of 6 Years & 4 Months: $107,261 is Salary average; 50% of Jobs pay between $87,751 & $126,772; and, 5% of Jobs top $155,422.
Number of Jobs :
Most Jobs are available closest to the Salary Average.
Fewer Jobs are available at Lower and Higher Salaries.
Salary End Points :
$26,400 = annual salary at $15 per hour working between: 44 weeks at 40 hours a week, to, 52 weeks at 34 hours a week.
$451,447 = annual salary for the highest paying IT Job in the highest paying US City at the Top 2.5% Experience and Top 2.5% Salary.
Job Market :
Job offers, publicly posted in want ads by employers, were observed and measured from 1/2/25 to 12/31/25.
View: Documentation and Methodology.
Top Salaries
| Top Percentile of Job market | Top Salary |
|---|---|
| 2.5% | $165,003 |
| 5% | $155,422 |
| 10% | $144,569 |
| 25% | $126,772 |
| 33% | $119,570 |
| 50% | $107,261 |
Top Percentile of Job Market =
Number of Jobs Above the Top Salary
÷
Number of all Jobs at 6 Years and 4 Months Experience.
Salary Range and Jobs
Percentage of Jobs within Salary Lows and Highs
| Percent of Job Market | Salary Range | |
|---|---|---|
| Low Salary | High Salary | |
| 10% | $103,635 | $110,888 |
| 25% | $98,062 | $116,461 |
| 33% | $94,953 | $119,570 |
| 50% | $87,751 | $126,772 |
| 67% | $79,009 | $135,514 |
| 95% | $49,520 | $165,003 |
Salary Average =
$107,261
Mid Point between each Low/High pair.
Percent of Job Market =
Number of Jobs with Salary between Low/High pair
÷
Number of all Jobs at 6 Years and 4 Months Experience.
Salary and Experience
Salary ±1 Year
| Experience | Salary Average | Raise +1 Year |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Years and 4 Months | $98,435 | $8,827 at 8.97% |
| 6 Years and 4 Months | $107,261 | $9,447 at 8.81% |
| 7 Years and 4 Months | $116,708 | $10,011 at 8.58% |
About Salary and Experience
Salary by Year :
Salary changes negligibly in the first years, rises stably with greater experience and grows briskly into maturity.
Salary Growth Overall :
The increase in Salary average from low to high experience is equal to that in the USA IT job market as a whole.
Salary and Experience Range :
Salary average rises with experience: $79,947 at the low experience of Entry Level; $107,261 at the average experience of 6 Years and 4 Months; and, $186,433 at the top experience of 13 Years and 6 Months.
Experience End Points :
0 = Entry Level.
16 Years and 5 Months = Top 2.5% Experience in the IT Job with the highest required experience in the USA.
Job Market :
Job offers, publicly posted in want ads by employers, were observed and measured from 1/2/25 to 12/31/25.
View: Documentation and Methodology.
Salary by Year
Salary and Experience Range
95% of Jobs require Experience between the Low and Top
| Experience | Salary Average | Raise +1 Year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low | Entry Level | $79,947 | $-7,023 at -8.78% |
| Average | 6 Years and 4 Months | $107,261 | $9,447 at 8.81% |
| Top | 13 Years and 6 Months | $186,433 | $12,999 at 6.97% |
Qualifications
Description
Install, configure, optimize, monitor, maintain, backup, recover, troubleshoot, update and enhance, Linux server software, are primary position responsibilities.
Skills
The qualifications of this information technology Job:
- Linux;
-
- System-Network Administrator,
-
Network, System, Server or Virtualization,
and
Administrator, Architect or Engineer.
Characteristics
A+ Skills
Additional IT skills requested in some job descriptions:
- Master of Arts/Science or Ph.D. Graduate Degree,
- 22% of job descriptions;
- Bachelor of Arts/Science Degree,
- 68% of job descriptions;
- Security Clearance,
- 16% of job descriptions;
- Python,
- 20% of job descriptions;
- Ruby,
- 10% of job descriptions;
- Git,
- 32% of job descriptions;
- Jira,
- 26% of job descriptions;
- ServiceNow,
- 10% of job descriptions;
- Puppet,
- 6% of job descriptions;
- ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library),
- 8% of job descriptions;
- Agile software methodology,
- 4% of job descriptions.
Location
Chicago, IL
- Illinois,
- Addison, Arlington Heights, Aurora, Batavia, Barrington, Berwyn, Bollingbrook, Boone, Buffalo Grove, Burbank, Calumet City, Carol Stream, Carpentersville, Chicago Heights, Chicago, Cicero, Cook County, Crystal Lake, De Kalb County, De Kalb, Deerfield, Des Plaines, Downers Grove, DuPage County, East Chicago, Elgin, Elk Grove, Elk Grove Village, Elmhurst, Evanston, Geneva, Glendale Heights, Glenview, Grundy County, Hanover Park, Harvard, Harvey, Highland Park, Hines, Hinsdale, Hoffman Estates, Homewood, Itasca, Joliet, Kane County, Kankakee County, Kendall County, Lake County, Lake Forest, Lansing, Libertyville, Lincolnshire, Lombard, Maywood, McHenry County, Morris, Mount Prospect, Mundelein, Naperville, Niles, Norridge, North Chicago, Northbrook, Oak Brook, Oak Forest, Oak Lawn, Oak Park, Ogle, Orland Park, Palatine, Park Forest, Park Ridge, Plano, Riverside, Riverwoods, Rochelle, Rockford, Rolling, Romeoville, Rosemont, Schaumburg, Schiller Park, Skokie, St Charles, Streamwood, Tinley Park, Vernon Hills, Warrenville, Waukegan, Westchester, Wheaton, Wheeling, Will County, Wilmette, Winebago, Wood Dale and Woodridge;
- Indiana,
- Cedar Lake, Crown Point, East Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Hobart, Lake County, Lake, Merrilvilee, Merrilville, Portage, Porter County, and Valparaiso;
- Wisconsin,
- Kenosha County and Kenosha.
These locations are all included in the Chicago, IL metropolitan area as defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB).