Bench chemist vs production chemist

The differences between bench chemists and production chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a production chemist has an average salary of $62,937, which is higher than the $57,401 average annual salary of a bench chemist.

The top three skills for a bench chemist include analytical methods, HPLC and wet chemistry. The most important skills for a production chemist are GMP, laboratory equipment, and synthesis.

Bench chemist vs production chemist overview

	Bench Chemist	Production Chemist
Yearly salary	$57,401	$62,937
Hourly rate	$27.60	$30.26
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	3,038	58,948
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Bench chemist vs production chemist salary

Bench chemists and production chemists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Bench Chemist	Production Chemist
Average salary	$57,401	$62,937
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $84,000	Between $38,000 And $101,000
Highest paying City	-	Pennsauken, NJ
Highest paying state	-	Delaware
Best paying company	-	Bio-Rad Laboratories
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between bench chemist and production chemist education

There are a few differences between a bench chemist and a production chemist in terms of educational background:

	Bench Chemist	Production Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 83%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of California, Berkeley	University of Southern California

Bench chemist vs production chemist demographics

Here are the differences between bench chemists' and production chemists' demographics:

	Bench Chemist	Production Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 58.2% Female, 41.8%	Male, 70.4% Female, 29.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 9.4% Asian, 18.2% White, 59.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%	Black or African American, 7.2% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 24.4% White, 54.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between bench chemist and production chemist duties and responsibilities

Bench chemist example responsibilities.

Test developmental compounds to ASTM standards and manage certification submissions.
Prepare ASTM samples and test physical properties.
Perform USP testing on a wide variety of pharmaceuticals to guarantee product quality.
Analyze intermediates and products through analytical data such as LCMS, NMR, etc.
Maintain detailed notebooks containing results and transmit those results via LIMS to the proper plant personnel.
Perform final release testing on batch samples to establish conformance to company, third party, or FDA specifications.

Production chemist example responsibilities.

Lead the team in the isolation and purification of critical enzymes vital to the manufacture of diagnostic medical reagents.
Test developmental compounds to ASTM standards and manage certification submissions.
Experience with running ELISA as well as SDS-PAGE.
Coordinate with technicians on ELISA performance and troubleshooting.
Perform UPLC, FTIR, and moisture analysis.
Perform in-process and finish products sample testing using HPLC.

Bench chemist vs production chemist skills

Common bench chemist skills

Analytical Methods, 12%
HPLC, 10%
Wet Chemistry, 10%
Method Development, 9%
GC, 8%
GMP, 8%

Common production chemist skills

GMP, 13%
Laboratory Equipment, 10%
Synthesis, 8%
ISO, 7%
R, 5%
Safety Guidelines, 4%

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Bench Chemist vs Production Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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