Bench chemist vs quality control chemist

The differences between bench chemists and quality control chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a quality control chemist has an average salary of $58,892, 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 quality control chemist are QC, HPLC, and lab equipment.

Bench chemist vs quality control chemist overview

	Bench Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Yearly salary	$57,401	$58,892
Hourly rate	$27.60	$28.31
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	3,038	90,467
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Bench chemist vs quality control chemist salary

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

	Bench Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Average salary	$57,401	$58,892
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $84,000	Between $45,000 And $75,000
Highest paying City	-	North Kingstown, RI
Highest paying state	-	Vermont
Best paying company	-	Hallstar
Best paying industry	-	Manufacturing

Differences between bench chemist and quality control chemist education

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

	Bench Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 82%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of California, Berkeley	University of Southern California

Bench chemist vs quality control chemist demographics

Here are the differences between bench chemists' and quality control chemists' demographics:

	Bench Chemist	Quality Control Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 58.2% Female, 41.8%	Male, 56.5% Female, 43.5%
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, 7.7% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 9.3% Asian, 21.4% White, 56.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between bench chemist and quality control 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.

Quality control chemist example responsibilities.

Manage investigations of out of spec results and complaints in CatsWEB CAPA management system.
Verify raw material compliance utilizing ICP, FTIR, and USP wet chemistry methods.
Perform analysis utilizing UV/VIS, FTIR, Karl Fischer, and TLC.
Perform the potency studies, dissolution, and uniformity, by using HPLC, GC, and UV/VIS.
Analyze active ingredients in sunscreens, volatile organics, and preservatives utilizing ICP, GC, NIRS, and HPLC.
Execute dissolution and disintegration testing and microbiology testing with compliance requirements within GMP, GLP, and FDA regulatory environments.

Bench chemist vs quality control chemist skills

Common bench chemist skills

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

Common quality control chemist skills

QC, 9%
HPLC, 7%
Lab Equipment, 7%
GMP, 6%
Analytical Methods, 5%
UV/Vis, 4%

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Bench Chemist vs Quality Control Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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