540 West Madison
Financial Office in Chicago, IL · 540 W. Madison · 60661
At a glance
540 West Madison is a 1,222,281-square-foot financial office at 540 W. Madison in Chicago, Illinois, built in 2004. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 73 out of 100 (grade B), a site energy-use intensity of 109.3 kBtu/ft² and 18,624 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 61% of the 2,464 scored buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 73 (band B) |
| Site EUI | 109.3 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 304.9 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 18,624 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 15.2 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 38,911,362 kWh |
| Natural gas | 8,833 therms |
| Water use | 18,995 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 1,222,281 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:101729:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 73 | -1 | 109.3 kBtu/ft² | 18,624 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 74 | -12 | 103.8 kBtu/ft² | 16,649 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 86 | -2 | 91.6 kBtu/ft² | 15,899 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 88 | +9 | 86.5 kBtu/ft² | 16,431 tCO₂e |
| 2019 | 79 | -2 | 84.5 kBtu/ft² | — |
| 2018 | 81 | -10 | 76.8 kBtu/ft² | 15,570 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 91 | +5 | 73.3 kBtu/ft² | 16,515 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 86 | +5 | 69.4 kBtu/ft² | 15,543 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 81 | +4 | 69.8 kBtu/ft² | 16,997 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 77 | 76.0 kBtu/ft² | 18,514 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
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Location
- Address
- 540 W. Madison
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60661
- Coordinates
- 41.87815, -87.63950
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- theMART, Chicagoscore —
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- 10/30 South Wackerscore 72
Office · 3,014,304 sq ft
- 320 South Canalscore —
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- Harris Bank Buildingscore —
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Hospital (General Medical & Surgical) · 1,266,745 sq ft
- 321 N. Clark Property, LLCscore 87
Office · 981,053 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does 540 West Madison compare with other financial office buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 6 financial office buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. 540 West Madison's ENERGY STAR score of 73 compares with an average of 79 across the 3 that report a score. Its site EUI of 109.3 kBtu/ft² is about 38% above the average of 79.2 kBtu/ft² — it uses more energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 15.2 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 67% above the group average of 9.1 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 1,222,281 sq ft, it is roughly in line with the average floor area of 1,150,111 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 2004, 21 years later than the group's average year built (1984). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 161 financial office buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 72 and a site EUI of 69.2 kBtu/ft².
How has 540 West Madison's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for 540 West Madison, covering report years 2014–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 77 in 2014 to 73 in 2023 (-4 points); its best year on file was 2017, at 91. Site EUI moved from 76.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 109.3 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 44% increase. Reported emissions went from 18,514 tCO₂e to 18,624 tCO₂e over the same span (up 1%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 73 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 73 means the building performs better than about 73% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 73 falls in band B — above median (70–84). It sits 2 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Chicago, 35% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. 540 West Madison's 109.3 kBtu/ft² across 1,222,281 sq ft works out to about 133.6 billion Btu (39,153 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 304.9 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 38,911,362 kWh of electricity, 8,833 therms of natural gas and 18,995 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires 540 West Madison to report its energy use?
540 West Madison reports under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance, the legal basis of the Chicago Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record chicago:101729:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More financial office buildings in Chicago
Frequently asked questions
What is 540 West Madison's energy grade?
540 West Madison scores 73 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band B, above median (70–84) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does 540 West Madison use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 109.3 kBtu/ft² (304.9 kBtu/ft² source) across 1,222,281 sq ft, including 38,911,362 kWh of electricity and 8,833 therms of natural gas.
What are 540 West Madison's carbon emissions?
540 West Madison reported 18,624 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (15.2 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is 540 West Madison?
540 West Madison is at 540 W. Madison, in Chicago, Illinois 60661. Its coordinates are 41.87815, -87.63950 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is 540 West Madison and when was it built?
540 West Madison has 1,222,281 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 2004 as its year built. It is classed as financial office.
Is 540 West Madison covered by the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Chicago Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance.
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About this data
Source: Chicago Energy Benchmarking (Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “540 West Madison, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/540-west-madison-96daf239 (data as of October 2, 2026).