Bench chemist vs research chemist

The differences between bench chemists and research chemists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a research chemist has an average salary of $75,843, 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 research chemist are laboratory equipment, method development, and R.

Bench chemist vs research chemist overview

	Bench Chemist	Research Chemist
Yearly salary	$57,401	$75,843
Hourly rate	$27.60	$36.46
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	3,038	53,769
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Average age	42	42
Years of experience	-	-

Bench chemist vs research chemist salary

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

	Bench Chemist	Research Chemist
Average salary	$57,401	$75,843
Salary range	Between $39,000 And $84,000	Between $53,000 And $108,000
Highest paying City	-	McLean, VA
Highest paying state	-	Virginia
Best paying company	-	BP America Inc
Best paying industry	-	Energy

Differences between bench chemist and research chemist education

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

	Bench Chemist	Research Chemist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 71%
Most common major	Chemistry	Chemistry
Most common college	University of California, Berkeley	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Bench chemist vs research chemist demographics

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

	Bench Chemist	Research Chemist
Average age	42	42
Gender ratio	Male, 58.2% Female, 41.8%	Male, 68.5% Female, 31.5%
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, 7.4% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 9.2% Asian, 22.2% White, 56.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2%
LGBT Percentage	5%	5%

Differences between bench chemist and research 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.

Research chemist example responsibilities.

Manage the CDS and LIMS systems for the institute.
Manage and record experimental data with lab management software (LIMS).
Manage projects involving the development of GC/MS methods, particle collection systems, and Raman spectral database creation.
Characterize the particles using SEM, DSC, IR, and UV-Vis.
Identify sample structure using microscopy, crystallography, NMR, UV/VIS, GC and AAS.
Develop GC & FTIR instrumental methods of analysis to support quality of incoming raw materials to ensure quality of finish products.

Bench chemist vs research chemist skills

Common bench chemist skills

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

Common research chemist skills

Laboratory Equipment, 10%
Method Development, 10%
R, 9%
HPLC, 5%
Analytical Chemistry, 5%
Polymer, 5%

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Bench Chemist vs Research Chemist

Updated January 8, 2025

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