Find a Job You Really Want In
Chemists are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as chemists in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since chemists are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where chemists have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for chemists.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s chemists:
So there you have it — Chemists is the best of the best when it comes to being a chemist.
How did Chemists end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for chemists and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
How we determined the best states to be a chemist
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for chemists in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well chemists get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for chemists in California is $88,570 and the average salary in Illinois is $74,770, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for chemists in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for chemists.
1. Delaware
Total Jobs: 1,420
Average Annual Salary: $105,570
Average Entry Level Salary: $65,350
Average Experienced Salary: $154,850
Location Quotient: 5.4
2. Maryland
Total Jobs: 3,100
Average Annual Salary: $116,060
Average Entry Level Salary: $67,340
Average Experienced Salary: $164,200
Location Quotient: 1.98
3. Texas
Total Jobs: 5,160
Average Annual Salary: $87,490
Average Entry Level Salary: $43,520
Average Experienced Salary: $145,330
Location Quotient: 0.73
4. Minnesota
Total Jobs: 2,010
Average Annual Salary: $88,400
Average Entry Level Salary: $50,600
Average Experienced Salary: $131,350
Location Quotient: 1.2
5. Virginia
Total Jobs: 1,390
Average Annual Salary: $98,670
Average Entry Level Salary: $53,500
Average Experienced Salary: $153,300
Location Quotient: 0.62
6. Michigan
Total Jobs: 3,620
Average Annual Salary: $79,860
Average Entry Level Salary: $39,940
Average Experienced Salary: $131,830
Location Quotient: 1.44
7. North Carolina
Total Jobs: 4,370
Average Annual Salary: $77,820
Average Entry Level Salary: $45,030
Average Experienced Salary: $121,930
Location Quotient: 1.71
8. Kansas
Total Jobs: 660
Average Annual Salary: $77,600
Average Entry Level Salary: $42,360
Average Experienced Salary: $118,790
Location Quotient: 0.82
9. Missouri
Total Jobs: 1,920
Average Annual Salary: $73,940
Average Entry Level Salary: $43,400
Average Experienced Salary: $114,500
Location Quotient: 1.17
10. New Mexico
Total Jobs: 300
Average Annual Salary: $95,940
Average Entry Level Salary: $42,410
Average Experienced Salary: $169,090
Location Quotient: 0.64
There You Have It – The Best States To Be A Chemist
If you’re looking to start out your career as a chemist these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be a chemist in America:
Detailed List Of The Best States For chemists
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delaware | $105,570 |
| 2 | Maryland | $116,060 |
| 3 | Texas | $87,490 |
| 4 | Minnesota | $88,400 |
| 5 | Virginia | $98,670 |
| 6 | Michigan | $79,860 |
| 7 | North Carolina | $77,820 |
| 8 | Kansas | $77,600 |
| 9 | Missouri | $73,940 |
| 10 | New Mexico | $95,940 |
| 11 | Georgia | $83,240 |
| 12 | Nebraska | $79,740 |
| 13 | Mississippi | $78,680 |
| 14 | Oklahoma | $77,740 |
| 15 | New Jersey | $96,100 |
| 16 | Idaho | $78,400 |
| 17 | Alabama | $76,220 |
| 18 | Illinois | $74,770 |
| 19 | Ohio | $72,940 |
| 20 | Tennessee | $75,430 |
| 21 | Indiana | $69,690 |
| 22 | Louisiana | $77,490 |
| 23 | Kentucky | $72,100 |
| 24 | North Dakota | $83,570 |
| 25 | Pennsylvania | $77,250 |
| 26 | Utah | $70,450 |
| 27 | Washington | $84,440 |
| 28 | South Carolina | $75,960 |
| 29 | Connecticut | $92,850 |
| 30 | West Virginia | $66,040 |
| 31 | Wisconsin | $71,690 |
| 32 | Arkansas | $72,840 |
| 33 | Iowa | $71,120 |
| 34 | Wyoming | $66,420 |
| 35 | Colorado | $77,250 |
| 36 | Massachusetts | $94,270 |
| 37 | Montana | $64,820 |
| 38 | Rhode Island | $85,390 |
| 39 | Arizona | $72,090 |
| 40 | California | $88,570 |
| 41 | Vermont | $69,140 |
| 42 | Oregon | $76,780 |
| 43 | New Hampshire | $77,960 |
| 44 | Florida | $67,800 |
| 45 | South Dakota | $62,550 |
| 46 | Alaska | $83,310 |
| 47 | New York | $85,590 |
| 48 | Nevada | $71,230 |
| 49 | Maine | $64,730 |
| 50 | Hawaii | $76,480 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
