{"h1":"Best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the Great Lakes","faq":[{"a":"Chicago is the best all-round city for mid-career professionals in the Great Lakes, with a score of 83 / 100.","q":"Which city ranks first: best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the great lakes?"},{"a":"14 cities have at least 100 openings, so the list has 14 entries.","q":"How many cities are ranked?"},{"a":"A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): mid-career share of openings 35%, pay after cost of living 30%, mid-career openings 20%, director-and-above share 15%. A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most. Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked. A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score.","q":"How is the ranking calculated?"},{"a":"Every month. This is the November 2026 edition. Older editions stay on this site at their own dated addresses.","q":"How often is it updated?"}],"lead":"Chicago is the best all-round city for mid-career professionals in the Great Lakes, with a score of 83 / 100.","minN":100,"rows":[{"n":7607,"bar":1,"key":"IL|chicago","sub":"IL","href":"/places/illinois/city/chicago","name":"Chicago","rank":1,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"50%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$130k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"3,800"}],"value":82.6923076923077,"change":null,"employers":["Publicis Groupe","Northern Trust","Confidential"],"valueLabel":"83 / 100"},{"n":1276,"bar":0.883720930232558,"key":"MN|minneapolis","sub":"MN","href":"/places/minnesota/city/minneapolis","name":"Minneapolis","rank":2,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"52%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$121k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"665"}],"value":73.07692307692307,"change":null,"employers":["Mortenson","Target ALS Foundation","Ameriprise Certificate"],"valueLabel":"73 / 100"},{"n":350,"bar":0.8790697674418605,"key":"MI|ann arbor","sub":"MI","href":"/places/michigan/city/ann-arbor","name":"Ann Arbor","rank":3,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"61%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$157k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"214"}],"value":72.6923076923077,"change":null,"employers":["May Mobility","Torc Robotics","Thomson Reuters"],"valueLabel":"73 / 100"},{"n":1422,"bar":0.7906976744186045,"key":"IN|indianapolis","sub":"IN","href":"/places/indiana/city/indianapolis","name":"Indianapolis","rank":4,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"47%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$129k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"667"}],"value":65.38461538461537,"change":null,"employers":["Eli Lilly and Company","State of Indiana","Masco"],"valueLabel":"65 / 100"},{"n":827,"bar":0.7534883720930232,"key":"WI|milwaukee","sub":"WI","href":"/places/wisconsin/city/milwaukee","name":"Milwaukee","rank":5,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"50%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$121k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"415"}],"value":62.30769230769231,"change":null,"employers":["Michels","Rockwell Automation","Johnson Controls International"],"valueLabel":"62 / 100"},{"n":321,"bar":0.6883720930232557,"key":"MN|eden prairie","sub":"MN","href":"/places/minnesota/city/eden-prairie","name":"Eden Prairie","rank":6,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"45%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$137k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"146"}],"value":56.92307692307692,"change":null,"employers":["Unitedhealth Group","LHC Group","Illinois Tool Works"],"valueLabel":"57 / 100"},{"n":1892,"bar":0.6511627906976744,"key":"OH|columbus","sub":"OH","href":"/places/ohio/city/columbus","name":"Columbus","rank":7,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"49%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$115k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"918"}],"value":53.84615384615384,"change":null,"employers":["State of Ohio","Nationwide","Ohio State University-Newark Campus"],"valueLabel":"54 / 100"},{"n":734,"bar":0.5906976744186048,"key":"MI|detroit","sub":"MI","href":"/places/michigan/city/detroit","name":"Detroit","rank":8,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"46%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$125k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"340"}],"value":48.84615384615385,"change":null,"employers":["Wayne State University","Henry Ford Health System","Accident Fund"],"valueLabel":"49 / 100"},{"n":891,"bar":0.483720930232558,"key":"OH|cleveland","sub":"OH","href":"/places/ohio/city/cleveland","name":"Cleveland","rank":9,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"49%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$102k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"436"}],"value":39.99999999999999,"change":null,"employers":["Flexjet","Sherwin Williams","KeyBank"],"valueLabel":"40 / 100"},{"n":247,"bar":0.4744186046511628,"key":"IL|mundelein","sub":"IL","href":"/places/illinois/city/mundelein","name":"Mundelein","rank":10,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"35%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$136k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"87"}],"value":39.23076923076923,"change":null,"employers":["Coda Search│Staffing"],"valueLabel":"39 / 100"},{"n":1379,"bar":0.4558139534883721,"key":"OH|cincinnati","sub":"OH","href":"/places/ohio/city/cincinnati","name":"Cincinnati","rank":11,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"46%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$107k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"640"}],"value":37.69230769230769,"change":null,"employers":["Medpace Holdings","Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Medical Center","Procter & Gamble"],"valueLabel":"38 / 100"},{"n":194,"bar":0.386046511627907,"key":"MN|st paul","sub":"MN","href":"/places/minnesota/city/st-paul","name":"St. Paul","rank":12,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"47%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$104k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"91"}],"value":31.92307692307692,"change":null,"employers":["George Konik Associates","Mortenson","Old National Bank"],"valueLabel":"32 / 100"},{"n":218,"bar":0.2279069767441861,"key":"IL|schaumburg","sub":"IL","href":"/places/illinois/city/schaumburg","name":"Schaumburg","rank":13,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"45%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$104k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"99"}],"value":18.84615384615385,"change":null,"employers":["Motorola Solutions","Fictiv","Zurich"],"valueLabel":"19 / 100"},{"n":283,"bar":0.2,"key":"IL|springfield","sub":"IL","href":"/places/illinois/city/springfield","name":"Springfield","rank":14,"stats":[{"label":"Mid-career share of openings","value":"43%"},{"label":"Pay after cost of living","value":"$103k"},{"label":"Mid-career openings","value":"121"}],"value":16.53846153846154,"change":null,"employers":["State of Illinois","Army National Guard Units","Hshs Medical Group"],"valueLabel":"17 / 100"}],"slug":"best-all-round-cities-for-mid-career-professionals-in-the-great-lakes","unit":"openings","scope":{"id":"great-lakes","kind":"region","name":"Great Lakes"},"title":"Best all-round cities for mid-career professionals in the Great Lakes","family":"Best overall","method":["A city's score is the weighted average of its percentile rank on each measure among the ranked cities (100 is first, 0 is last): mid-career share of openings 35%, pay after cost of living 30%, mid-career openings 20%, director-and-above share 15%.","A score of 100 would mean first on every measure and 50 is the middle of the pack. The measures and weights are fixed in advance and shown here; they are a judgment about what matters to this reader, so use the single-measure rankings when one thing matters most.","Only cities with enough openings and pay data are ranked.","A city where one employer posts more than 50% of its openings is not ranked, so a single company cannot decide a city's score."],"builtAt":"2026-11-03T03:50:28.595Z","edition":"2026-11","measure":"cmid","sources":["NextChapter job data: open professional roles and posted pay","Bureau of Economic Analysis regional price parities 2024"],"baseline":null,"keyFacts":["#1 Chicago, IL: 83 / 100","#2 Minneapolis, MN: 73 / 100","#3 Ann Arbor, MI: 73 / 100","14 cities ranked in the Great Lakes","Data as of November 2026"],"placeNoun":"cities","commentary":["The lead is wide: Chicago (83 / 100) is well clear of Mundelein at #10 (39 / 100).","Mundelein reaches #10 on a sample of 247 openings, a smaller market than most of the top ten, so its rank can move more from month to month.","Chicago is the largest market in the top ten, with 7,607 openings behind its figure.","Cities with fewer than 100 openings are not ranked, and small differences between neighbouring ranks are not meaningful."],"license":"Free to use and share with a link to https://launchyournextchapter.com/rankings/best-all-round-cities-for-mid-career-professionals-in-the-great-lakes"}