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Patent attorney salary
Average patent attorney salary
$86,919
Understanding Patent Attorney Salaries
In the field of intellectual property law, Patent Attorneys enjoy a substantial average salary of $86,919 per year. This figure can fluctuate based on several critical factors:
- Experience Level: Entry-level patent attorneys may start with lower salaries, while those with years of practice can earn significantly more.
- Geographical Location: States like California and New York often offer higher wages due to the cost of living and demand for legal expertise.
- Industry Sector: Patent attorneys working in technology-driven industries tend to command higher salaries than those in less competitive sectors.
Additionally, the complexity of cases and specialization in niche areas can further affect earnings. As the demand for intellectual property protections grows, so does the potential for higher salaries in this legal field.
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Where can a Patent Attorney earn more?
Patent attorney salaries by experience level
| Experience level | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level patent attorney | $50,400 | $24.25 |
| Mid-level patent attorney | $60,900 | $29.27 |
| Senior-level patent attorney | $128,000 | $61.39 |
Patent attorney salary estimates from across the web
Average patent attorney salary by state
The highest-paying states for patent attorneys are Massachusetts, California, and New Jersey. The lowest average patent attorney salary states are Montana, Oklahoma, and Maine.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for patent attorneys
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | $111,412 | $53.56 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $117,586 | $56.53 |
| 3 | California | $110,124 | $52.94 |
| 4 | New Jersey | $98,975 | $47.58 |
| 5 | New York | $88,041 | $42.33 |
| 6 | Virginia | $87,339 | $41.99 |
| 7 | Nevada | $85,954 | $41.32 |
| 8 | Connecticut | $88,831 | $42.71 |
| 9 | Oregon | $85,901 | $41.30 |
| 10 | Michigan | $78,189 | $37.59 |
| 11 | Vermont | $89,579 | $43.07 |
| 12 | Washington | $81,463 | $39.16 |
| 13 | Illinois | $79,751 | $38.34 |
| 14 | Rhode Island | $84,672 | $40.71 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $79,699 | $38.32 |
| 16 | Texas | $74,528 | $35.83 |
| 17 | Maryland | $84,738 | $40.74 |
| 18 | Tennessee | $77,261 | $37.14 |
| 19 | Georgia | $75,680 | $36.38 |
| 20 | Florida | $73,160 | $35.17 |
| 21 | Arizona | $73,157 | $35.17 |
| 22 | Delaware | $81,413 | $39.14 |
| 23 | New Hampshire | $78,230 | $37.61 |
| 24 | Alaska | $77,796 | $37.40 |
| 25 | Louisiana | $72,388 | $34.80 |
| 26 | Ohio | $74,191 | $35.67 |
| 27 | Colorado | $71,906 | $34.57 |
| 28 | Utah | $74,836 | $35.98 |
| 29 | Minnesota | $69,758 | $33.54 |
| 30 | West Virginia | $72,255 | $34.74 |
| 31 | Wisconsin | $68,066 | $32.72 |
| 32 | Missouri | $65,329 | $31.41 |
| 33 | Idaho | $62,946 | $30.26 |
| 34 | North Dakota | $64,987 | $31.24 |
| 35 | New Mexico | $63,949 | $30.74 |
| 36 | Wyoming | $59,381 | $28.55 |
| 37 | Iowa | $69,892 | $33.60 |
| 38 | Alabama | $68,182 | $32.78 |
| 39 | Nebraska | $63,407 | $30.48 |
| 40 | North Carolina | $63,706 | $30.63 |
| 41 | Montana | $58,689 | $28.22 |
| 42 | South Carolina | $60,095 | $28.89 |
| 43 | Kentucky | $61,422 | $29.53 |
| 44 | Kansas | $60,963 | $29.31 |
| 45 | Maine | $56,515 | $27.17 |
| 46 | Hawaii | $54,997 | $26.44 |
| 47 | Indiana | $53,759 | $25.85 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $59,983 | $28.84 |
| 49 | Oklahoma | $57,211 | $27.51 |
| 50 | South Dakota | $58,712 | $28.23 |
| 51 | Arkansas | $45,289 | $21.77 |
Highest paying cities for patent attorneys
The highest-paying cities for patent attorneys are Boston, MA, San Francisco, CA, and Washington, DC.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boston, MA | $119,512 | $57.46 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $118,611 | $57.02 |
| 3 | Washington, DC | $112,127 | $53.91 |
| 4 | Ewing, NJ | $98,212 | $47.22 |
| 5 | Alexandria, VA | $90,040 | $43.29 |
| 6 | Albany, NY | $88,810 | $42.70 |
| 7 | Vancouver, WA | $83,007 | $39.91 |
| 8 | Wilmington, DE | $81,816 | $39.33 |
| 9 | Chicago, IL | $80,318 | $38.61 |
| 10 | Atlanta, GA | $75,574 | $36.33 |
| 11 | Houston, TX | $74,863 | $35.99 |
| 12 | Boca Raton, FL | $73,224 | $35.20 |
| 13 | Tucson, AZ | $72,001 | $34.62 |
| 14 | Minneapolis, MN | $69,760 | $33.54 |
| 15 | Raleigh, NC | $64,669 | $31.09 |
| 16 | Indianapolis, IN | $53,305 | $25.63 |
Patent attorney salary details
A patent attorney's salary ranges from $49,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $152,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a patent attorney's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $152,000 | $12,667 | $73 |
| 75th Percentile | $116,000 | $9,667 | $56 |
| Average | $86,919 | $7,243 | $42 |
| 25th Percentile | $64,000 | $5,333 | $31 |
| 10th Percentile | $49,000 | $4,083 | $24 |
Highest paying patent attorney jobs
The highest paying types of patent attorneys are general counsel, lawyer, and litigation associate.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing Counselor | $78,730 | $6,561 | $37.85 | 33,639 |
| Lawyer | $115,808 | $9,651 | $55.68 | 2,897 |
| Legal Extern | $47,238 | $3,937 | $22.71 | 10,986 |
| General Counsel | $125,248 | $10,437 | $60.22 | 50,275 |
| Attorney At Law | $108,018 | $9,002 | $51.93 | 7,025 |
| Document Review Attorney | $81,181 | $6,765 | $39.03 | 9,393 |
Top companies hiring patent attorneys now:
Which companies pay patent attorneys the most?
Patent attorney salaries at Goodwin and Perkins Coie are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average patent attorney salary at companies like Locke Lord and Fish & Richardson are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Goodwin | $204,216 | $98.18 |
| 2 | Perkins Coie | $201,388 | $96.82 |
| 3 | Locke Lord | $183,026 | $87.99 |
| 4 | Fish & Richardson | $177,748 | $85.46 |
| 5 | Oliff PLC | $176,909 | $85.05 |
| 6 | Lee & Hayes | $166,839 | $80.21 |
| 7 | Brinks Gilson | $165,893 | $79.76 |
| 8 | Loza & Loza | $165,375 | $79.51 |
| 9 | Cantor Colburn | $164,584 | $79.13 |
| 10 | Myers Bigel | $162,606 | $78.18 |
| 11 | Westman, Champlin & Koehler, P.a. | $160,999 | $77.40 |
| 12 | Banner & Witcoff | $143,875 | $69.17 |
| 13 | Arent Fox | $143,766 | $69.12 |
| 14 | Barnes & Thornburg | $135,406 | $65.10 |
| 15 | Texas Instruments | $126,680 | $60.90 |
| 16 | Universal Display | $113,493 | $54.56 |
| 17 | The Chemours Company | $108,823 | $52.32 |
| 18 | Hoffmann-LA Roche Inc | $107,633 | $51.75 |
| 19 | Ladas & Parry | $105,413 | $50.68 |
| 20 | Los Alamos National Laboratory | $102,392 | $49.23 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Patent Attorney salary by industry
The average patent attorney salary varies across industries:
- The average patent attorney salary in the professional industry is $127,691, the highest of any industry.
- The average patent attorney salary in the finance industry is $120,236.
- Patent attorneys in the retail industry earn an average salary of $88,580, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for patent attorneys
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Professional | $127,691 | $61.39 |
| 2 | Pharmaceutical | $120,236 | $57.81 |
| 3 | Manufacturing | $97,631 | $46.94 |
| 4 | Retail | $88,580 | $42.59 |
High paying patent attorney jobs
Patent attorney salary trends
The average patent attorney salary has risen by $9,326 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average patent attorney earned $77,593 annually, but today, they earn $86,919 a year. That works out to a 7% change in pay for patent attorneys over the last decade.
Compare patent attorney salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average patent attorney salary over time
Compare patent attorney salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Patent attorney salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $86,900 | $41.79 | +3.1% |
| 2024 | $84,200 | $40.48 | +1.7% |
| 2023 | $82,800 | $39.81 | +1.4% |
| 2022 | $81,700 | $39.26 | +0.9% |
| 2021 | $80,900 | $38.90 | +2.0% |
Recently added patent attorney salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Development and Strategy Attorney VIP | Seattle, WA | 06/27/2025 | $100,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Telecommunications Patent Attorney VIP | Las Vegas, NV | 06/26/2025 | $200,000 |
| Astrazeneca PLC | Senior Patent Attorney | Gaithersburg, MD | 06/20/2025 | $174,010 |
| Regeneron Pharmaceuticals | Director, Patent Attorney-Genetics and Computational Biology | Tarrytown, NY | 06/13/2025 | $202,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Biotechnology Patent Attorney or Agent VIP | Portland, OR | 06/11/2025 | $140,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Attorney VIP | Roseland, NJ | 06/11/2025 | $235,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Development and Strategy Attorney VIP | West, PA | 06/10/2025 | $100,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Attorney or Agent (Biophysics, Bioinformatics, Ai/Machine Learning) VIP | Los Angeles, CA | 06/10/2025 | $180,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Attorney or Agent VIP | Saint Louis, MO | 06/10/2025 | $140,000 |
| Vanguard-Ip | Patent Attorney or Agent (Ai/Electrical Engineering) VIP | Denver, CO | 06/10/2025 | $100,000 |
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