What does a communications director cost a church in Illinois?
In Illinois, a communications director costs a church roughly $55,978–$73,891 per year in total — about $64,375 at a typical mid-size church (250–499 attendance) — including employer payroll taxes, before benefits. Because this is a non-clergy staff role, the church also pays the employer share of payroll taxes (about 7.65%), so the real cost runs above the salary, before benefits.
The communications director runs a church's public voice — web, social, print, and the weekend's screens and messaging. Because it's a role borrowed from the broader marketing world, its pay is anchored to local market rates for communications work, which can make it competitive to fill and means it doesn't scale much with attendance.
Illinois's cost of living sits near the national average, so church pay lands close to the national baseline (BEA prices Illinois at 100 versus 100 nationally).
Communications Director cost in Illinois, by church size
| Church size (avg. attendance) | Est. salary | Est. cost to the church |
|---|---|---|
| Under 100 | $44,200 | $47,581 |
| 100-249 | $52,000 | $55,978 |
| 250-499 | $59,800 | $64,375 |
| 500-999 | $68,640 | $73,891 |
| 1,000+ | $80,600 | $86,766 |
"Cost to the church" = salary + employer payroll tax (≈7.65%) , before retirement, health, or other benefits. Add those — and an optional clergy Social Security allowance — in the calculator.
Salary figures represent estimated cash salary, before employer payroll tax, benefits (retirement, insurance), and any housing allowance.
Benchmarks built on 2024–2025 source data (BEA 2024, BLS May 2025).
These are state-level estimates — costs in Illinois’s major metros can run meaningfully higher or lower. StaffClarity adjusts for your specific location.
Estimates are a start. See your actual cost.
Plug in your communications director's salary, housing, and benefits and get the exact fully-loaded cost — clergy or staff — then plan your whole team.
Other roles in Illinois
Communications Director in other states
How these numbers are built: a national church-comp base for the role, scaled by church size and adjusted for state cost of living, then run through the same fully-loaded cost model our calculator uses. Sources: BEA Regional Price Parities (state cost of living, 2024); BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (May 2025); Lifeway Research / GuideStone SBC Church Compensation Study (biennial, free). Figures are planning estimates, not a guarantee — your church's real numbers depend on experience, scope, and benefits.