Chemical analyst vs laboratory analyst

The differences between chemical analysts and laboratory analysts can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a chemical analyst and a laboratory analyst. Additionally, a chemical analyst has an average salary of $53,769, which is higher than the $44,024 average annual salary of a laboratory analyst.

The top three skills for a chemical analyst include lab equipment, analytical methods and analytical procedures. The most important skills for a laboratory analyst are test methods, lab equipment, and lims.

Chemical analyst vs laboratory analyst overview

	Chemical Analyst	Laboratory Analyst
Yearly salary	$53,769	$44,024
Hourly rate	$25.85	$21.17
Growth rate	4%	9%
Number of jobs	10,790	44,074
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Average age	44	38
Years of experience	2	2

Chemical analyst vs laboratory analyst salary

Chemical analysts and laboratory analysts have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Chemical Analyst	Laboratory Analyst
Average salary	$53,769	$44,024
Salary range	Between $36,000 And $78,000	Between $31,000 And $62,000
Highest paying City	Ossining, NY	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Maryland	New York
Best paying company	Koppers	AbbVie
Best paying industry	Energy	Pharmaceutical

Differences between chemical analyst and laboratory analyst education

There are a few differences between a chemical analyst and a laboratory analyst in terms of educational background:

	Chemical Analyst	Laboratory Analyst
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 76%	Bachelor's Degree, 79%
Most common major	Chemistry	Biology
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Chemical analyst vs laboratory analyst demographics

Here are the differences between chemical analysts' and laboratory analysts' demographics:

	Chemical Analyst	Laboratory Analyst
Average age	44	38
Gender ratio	Male, 56.8% Female, 43.2%	Male, 48.3% Female, 51.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 9.0% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 10.4% White, 56.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	9%	8%

Differences between chemical analyst and laboratory analyst duties and responsibilities

Chemical analyst example responsibilities.

Manage the scheduling and the FTIR analysis for all blend protocol gases.
Manage daily production schedule, monitor machine operation, addressed any etching machinery problems.
Perform finish product and release testing for prescription drugs in the pharmaceutical industry using UV/VIS, UV/PDA, and HPLC.
Develop, validate and support transfer of stability-indicative methods for solid and liquid dosage forms using HPLC, GC and GC/MS.
Perform routine maintenance and troubleshooting of FTIR instrumentation and GC instrumentation.
Follow cGMP, GLP, FDA, regulations.

Laboratory analyst example responsibilities.

Use sophisticate laboratory instrumentation (HPLC, FTIR, UV, GC) and computer systems to collect and record data.
Analyze organic compounds using gravimetric, titration, distillation and spectrophotometry methods.
Prepare for and represent the laboratory during FDA, customer, and ISO audits.
Complete preparation of organic samples for GC, HPLC, IR and GCMS analysis.
Prepare solid and aqueous samples for analysis on diagnostic instruments including GC, GCMS and IC.
Utilize internal LIMS computer database for data entry and communication.

Chemical analyst vs laboratory analyst skills

Common chemical analyst skills

Lab Equipment, 18%
Analytical Methods, 9%
Analytical Procedures, 6%
PH Meter, 5%
HPLC, 4%
R, 3%

Common laboratory analyst skills

Test Methods, 8%
Lab Equipment, 7%
Lims, 5%
Laboratory Procedures, 5%
Sample Preparation, 5%
Analytical Methods, 4%

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Chemical Analyst vs Laboratory Analyst

Updated January 8, 2025

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