Illinois Electric Vehicles jobs: 4,525 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, Illinois employs 4,525 people in the electric vehicles sector — about 3.1% of the U.S. total. That makes Illinois the 8th-largest state for electric vehicles jobs nationwide.
Electric Vehicles Jobs in Illinois (2024)
National share: 3.05% of all U.S. electric vehicles jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
Illinois ranks 8th out of 51 U.S. states in electric vehicles employment. At 4,525 workers, the state sits above the 25th-ranked Oregon’s tally by 3,413 jobs, and trails the national leader California by 44,440 electric vehicles workers.
1.1 Illinois’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The electric vehicles sector nationwide employs roughly 148,277 workers; Illinois accounts for 4,525 of them.
1.3 Where Illinois sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 89,878 | #5 |
| Wind | 9,216 | #2 |
| Solar | 7,158 | #15 |
| Electric Vehicles | 4,525 | #8 |
| Nuclear | 4,209 | #2 |
| Storage & Grid | 2,789 | #8 |
| Hydropower | 979 | #12 |
| Clean Fuels | 464 | #11 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in Illinois
Every electric vehicles-related sub-category reported for Illinois in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in Illinois
Illinois contributes 3.05% of the nation’s electric vehicles workforce. Within Illinois’s own clean-energy economy, electric vehicles accounts for 3.8% of total clean-energy jobs (4,525 of 119,217 workers).
Cost-of-living in Illinois is roughly 0.9% higher the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for electric vehicles roles in Illinois is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | Illinois-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineering Technician (EV) | $66,940 | $67,542 | 3 |
| Automotive Service Technician (EV) | $47,770 | $48,200 | 3 |
See all 2 electric vehicles occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
Illinois employers rate 17.2% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 28.0% as “somewhat difficult”) — easier than the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 45.2% of Illinois’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.
4.1 Employer hiring difficulty
4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group
| Industry (NAICS group) | Jobs (2024) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 79,577 |
| Construction | 64,186 |
| Professional Services | 47,035 |
| Other Services | 45,006 |
| Trade | 32,565 |
| Utilities | 22,832 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 12,286 |
| Mining and Extraction | 3,986 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 2,939 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.
Last updated: April 2026.