Local market data · Insurance agencies · Chicago
AI for insurance agencies in Chicago
The Chicago metro area had 4,083 insurance agencies in 2022, the 3rd most of 387 US metros and 3% of all in the country. They employed 30,638 people at an average of $107,206 a year. 90% have fewer than 10 staff, so the same few people answer the phone, book, follow up and do the paperwork. Those are the jobs AI tools take on today.
Talk through your agency with the person who builds it
A free 30-minute call. You leave knowing which part of your insurance agency to hand to AI first, what we would build, and roughly how long it takes.
Insurance agencies in Chicago vs the US
| Chicago metro | United States | |
|---|---|---|
| Businesses | 4,083 | 135,100 |
| People employed | 30,638 | 807,633 |
| Average staff per business | 7.5 | 6.0 |
| Average yearly pay per employee | $107,206 | $84,240 |
| Share with fewer than 10 staff | 90% | 90% |
Pay here is 27% higher than the national average for insurance agencies, so every hour of staff time costs more to spend on admin. The average insurance agency here has 7.5 people on payroll, 26% higher than the US figure of 6.0.
How big insurance agencies in Chicago are
Businesses with paid employees, by number of employees, March 2022.
Insurance agencies by county in the Chicago area
Cook County has the most, with 2,115 of the metro's 4,083 (52%). Among the 10 big metros on this page, Chicago ranks 3rd for average pay and 3rd for the share of small firms.
| County | Businesses | Employees | Avg pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County | 2,115 | 22,009 | $118,088 |
| DuPage County | 636 | 3,466 | $96,286 |
| Lake County | 321 | 1,427 | $85,131 |
| Kane County | 250 | 711 | $63,875 |
| Will County | 241 | 1,039 | $75,147 |
| Lake County | 196 | 829 | $54,526 |
| McHenry County | 132 | 470 | $57,611 |
| Porter County | 66 | 272 | $54,107 |
| Kendall County | 42 | 143 | $43,252 |
| DeKalb County | 35 | 137 | $44,978 |
| Grundy County | 25 | 55 | $65,073 |
| Jasper County | 18 | 61 | $54,115 |
1 smaller counties not shown. Census withholds pay where few firms would make it identifiable.
Where AI helps a insurance agency first
An insurance agency gets the most from AI by speeding up the repeatable work: answering quote requests, handling certificate requests, reminding customers before renewal and spotting who is missing a policy. Coverage advice and binding stay with licensed staff. Westward can build these pieces, and a person approves anything that goes out.
What your team's admin hours cost in Chicago
Change any number. The starting values are the Chicago averages above; the hours and the share are yours to set.
Those hours cost you$166,400 a year
The share you would hand off$49,920 a year
Hours your team gets back960 a year
See what we would build for thisGuides for insurance agencies, one job each
- Get more customers for insurance agencies
- Never miss a call for insurance agencies
- Follow up automatically for insurance agencies
- Booking and scheduling for insurance agencies
- More reviews for insurance agencies
- Marketing and content for insurance agencies
- Show up on Google and ChatGPT for insurance agencies
- Cut admin and paperwork for insurance agencies
- A dashboard that runs itself for insurance agencies
Insurance agencies in other big metros
| Metro | Businesses | Avg pay | Rank of 387 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 5,937 | $91,411 | 2nd |
| New York | 5,963 | $119,395 | 1st |
| Miami | 3,919 | $75,712 | 4th |
| Dallas | 3,522 | $88,388 | 5th |
| Houston | 2,862 | $90,204 | 7th |
| Atlanta | 2,922 | $96,647 | 6th |
| Washington | 1,569 | $87,309 | 13th |
| Philadelphia | 2,426 | $105,297 | 8th |
| Boston | 1,546 | $110,414 | 15th |
Where these numbers come from
From the U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022 (released 2024), industry code NAICS 524210 (Insurance agencies and brokerages), for the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metro area (13 counties). It counts businesses with paid employees in March 2022, so solo owners with no payroll are not in it. Average pay is total yearly payroll divided by employees. The calculator uses 50 working weeks and 2,080 hours a year. Page checked 2026-11-12.
Find the hours your agency can get back
A free 30-minute call. You leave knowing which part of your insurance agency to hand to AI first, what we would build, and roughly how long it takes.