Research Fellow Salary
Research Fellow Salary Estimate
$53,823
How much does a Research Fellow make?
The average salary for a research fellow in the United States is $53,823. Research fellow salaries typically range between $39,000 and $72,000 a year. The average hourly rate for research fellows is $25.88 per hour.
Location, education, and experience impacts how much a research fellow can expect to make. Research fellows make the most in Hawaii, Maine, California, Tennessee, and Montana.
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The average salary for a research fellow is $53,823 in the US. -
The average research fellow salary ranges between $39,000 and $72,000 in the US. -
Hourly rates for research fellows in the US typically range between $18 and $34 an hour. -
The average research fellow salary is $71,600 in Hawaii, $67,220 in Maine, and $67,202 in California. These are the three highest-paying states for research fellows in the US. -
McKinsey & Company Inc has the highest average salary for research fellows. -
Non profits is the highest-paying industry for research fellows in the US.
Highest Paying States For Research Fellows
- State View
- County View
Research Fellow average salary by State
| Rank | State | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $67,202 | $32.31 | 5,316 |
| 2 | Maine | $67,220 | $32.32 | 149 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $62,579 | $30.09 | 1,231 |
| 4 | Tennessee | $66,401 | $31.92 | 634 |
| 5 | Rhode Island | $57,673 | $27.73 | 169 |
| 6 | Montana | $63,203 | $30.39 | 117 |
| 7 | Connecticut | $60,324 | $29.00 | 375 |
| 8 | Minnesota | $56,437 | $27.13 | 779 |
| 9 | Hawaii | $71,600 | $34.42 | 71 |
| 10 | Maryland | $59,671 | $28.69 | 737 |
| 11 | Massachusetts | $53,888 | $25.91 | 2,533 |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | $51,921 | $24.96 | 1,745 |
| 13 | New Hampshire | $53,547 | $25.74 | 212 |
| 14 | Wisconsin | $56,246 | $27.04 | 507 |
| 15 | Indiana | $57,188 | $27.49 | 530 |
| 16 | Arizona | $56,312 | $27.07 | 562 |
| 17 | Alaska | $61,530 | $29.58 | 57 |
| 18 | Washington | $52,446 | $25.21 | 1,142 |
| 19 | Oregon | $52,207 | $25.10 | 743 |
| 20 | Delaware | $54,502 | $26.20 | 132 |
| 21 | Nevada | $56,607 | $27.21 | 135 |
| 22 | Illinois | $52,952 | $25.46 | 1,272 |
| 23 | New York | $51,101 | $24.57 | 1,801 |
| 24 | South Dakota | $48,999 | $23.56 | 116 |
| 25 | North Carolina | $50,612 | $24.33 | 979 |
| 26 | Michigan | $48,964 | $23.54 | 818 |
| 27 | Colorado | $49,168 | $23.64 | 796 |
| 28 | District of Columbia | $50,389 | $24.23 | 253 |
| 29 | Vermont | $46,424 | $22.32 | 121 |
| 30 | Oklahoma | $50,807 | $24.43 | 238 |
| 31 | Wyoming | $47,374 | $22.78 | 65 |
| 32 | Virginia | $48,079 | $23.11 | 1,078 |
| 33 | Nebraska | $46,622 | $22.41 | 244 |
| 34 | New Mexico | $44,275 | $21.29 | 264 |
| 35 | Arkansas | $47,631 | $22.90 | 141 |
| 36 | Kentucky | $47,321 | $22.75 | 246 |
| 37 | Iowa | $46,972 | $22.58 | 283 |
| 38 | Ohio | $45,690 | $21.97 | 938 |
| 39 | Florida | $46,305 | $22.26 | 1,498 |
| 40 | Kansas | $44,686 | $21.48 | 255 |
| 41 | Idaho | $44,467 | $21.38 | 147 |
| 42 | Utah | $41,969 | $20.18 | 329 |
| 43 | Texas | $42,120 | $20.25 | 2,020 |
| 44 | Missouri | $40,161 | $19.31 | 638 |
| 45 | Alabama | $44,019 | $21.16 | 202 |
| 46 | North Dakota | $41,169 | $19.79 | 78 |
| 47 | Georgia | $40,740 | $19.59 | 893 |
| 48 | West Virginia | $37,300 | $17.93 | 145 |
| 49 | Mississippi | $40,099 | $19.28 | 152 |
| 50 | South Carolina | $39,753 | $19.11 | 233 |
| 51 | Louisiana | $36,384 | $17.49 | 233 |
Highest Paying Cities For Research Fellows
| Rank | City | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South San Francisco, CA | $68,206 | $32.79 | 2 |
| 2 | Fairbanks, AK | $62,846 | $30.21 | 3 |
| 3 | Farmington, CT | $60,605 | $29.14 | |
| 4 | Baltimore, MD | $59,804 | $28.75 | 32 |
| 5 | Richmond, IN | $56,890 | $27.35 | |
| 6 | Rochester, MN | $56,450 | $27.14 | 50 |
| 7 | Phoenix, AZ | $56,421 | $27.13 | 8 |
| 8 | Boston, MA | $54,053 | $25.99 | 200 |
| 9 | Chicago, IL | $53,009 | $25.49 | 22 |
| 10 | Seattle, WA | $52,676 | $25.32 | 38 |
| 11 | Philadelphia, PA | $52,074 | $25.04 | 10 |
| 12 | New York, NY | $51,081 | $24.56 | 35 |
| 13 | Oklahoma City, OK | $50,825 | $24.44 | 27 |
| 14 | Winston-Salem, NC | $50,728 | $24.39 | |
| 15 | Washington, DC | $50,429 | $24.24 | 5 |
Here Are The Five Most In Demand Cities Right Now:
Research Fellows Salary Details
What is a Research Fellow's Salary?
| Percentile | Annual Salary | Monthly Salary | Hourly Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $72,000 | $6,000 | $35 |
| 75th Percentile | $63,000 | $5,250 | $30 |
| Average | $53,823 | $4,485 | $26 |
| 25th Percentile | $45,000 | $3,750 | $22 |
| 10th Percentile | $39,000 | $3,250 | $19 |
Highest Paying Types of Research Fellows
| Job Title | Annual Salary | Monthly Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Staff Scientist | $93,941 | $7,828 | $45.16 | 121,054 |
| Scientist | $97,344 | $8,112 | $46.80 | 62,467 |
| Research Laboratory Technician | $38,308 | $3,192 | $18.42 | 86,476 |
| Research And Development Scientist | $90,278 | $7,523 | $43.40 | 129,803 |
| Graduate Research Student | $34,658 | $2,888 | $16.66 | 58,921 |
| Research Project Coordinator | $48,683 | $4,057 | $23.41 | 67,800 |
Here are the five companies hiring the most now:
Which Companies Pay Research Fellows The Most?
| Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McKinsey & Company Inc | $76,751 | $36.90 | 1 |
| 2 | Competitive Enterprise Institute | $76,252 | $36.66 | |
| 3 | IBM | $75,577 | $36.34 | 6 |
| 4 | Argonne National Laboratory | $74,386 | $35.76 | 129 |
| 5 | Peterson Institute for International Economics | $73,942 | $35.55 | |
| 6 | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory | $73,707 | $35.44 | 334 |
| 7 | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory | $72,809 | $35.00 | 26 |
| 8 | HP | $72,764 | $34.98 | 6 |
| 9 | Battelle | $72,453 | $34.83 | 12 |
| 10 | Public Policy Institute of California | $71,773 | $34.51 | |
| 11 | The Heritage Foundation | $70,951 | $34.11 | |
| 12 | Boehringer Ingelheim | $70,164 | $33.73 | 27 |
| 13 | Novartis | $69,628 | $33.48 | 31 |
| 14 | AbbVie | $69,312 | $33.32 | 47 |
| 15 | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory | $68,699 | $33.03 | |
| 16 | Bristol-Myers Squibb | $68,628 | $32.99 | 330 |
| 17 | American Enterprise Institute | $68,014 | $32.70 | |
| 18 | Biogen | $67,985 | $32.69 | 1 |
| 19 | Amgen | $67,855 | $32.62 | 33 |
| 20 | Novo Nordisk | $67,768 | $32.58 | 29 |
How Much Do Research Fellows Make In Different Industries?
Research fellow salaries can vary depending on the industry. In fact, our data shows that the non profits, health care, and education industries tend to offer much higher salaries for research fellows. For example, research fellows make a whopping average salary of $57,261 while working in the non profits industry. Meanwhile, other people in this field are making $52,481 in the health care industry and $51,579 in the education industry.
Research fellows may want to avoid working in the government industry as it offers the lowest average salary of $51,050.
Highest Paying Industries For Research Fellows
| Rank | Industry | Average Salary | Hourly Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Non Profits | $57,261 | $27.53 |
| 2 | Health Care | $52,481 | $25.23 |
| 3 | Education | $51,579 | $24.80 |
| 4 | Government | $51,050 | $24.54 |
High Paying Research Fellow Jobs
Research Fellow Pay Trends
Average Research Fellow Salary Over Time
Compare salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Research Fellow Salary By Year
| Year | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $53,800 | $25.88 | +3.0% |
| 2022 | $52,200 | $25.11 | +4.5% |
| 2021 | $49,900 | $23.98 | +3.2% |
| 2020 | $48,300 | $23.21 | +1.9% |
| 2019 | $47,400 | $22.77 | -2.1% |
Recently Added Research Fellow Salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date Added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amgen | Post Doctoral Fellow-Oncology | Thousand Oaks, CA | 05/02/2023 | $77,626 |
| Cedars-Sinai | T32 Postdoctoral Research Fellow (U.S. Citizenship/Residency)-Endocrinology | Los Angeles, CA | 05/01/2023 | $64,500 |
| Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center | Post-Doctoral Research Fellow | Seattle, WA | 05/01/2023 | $65,484 |
| Kaiser Permanente | Research Post Doctoral Fellow | Oakland, CA | 05/01/2023 | $89,300 |
| Touro College | Health Disparities and Community Based Pharmacist Intervention Outcomes Research Fellow | New York, NY | 05/01/2023 | $44,000 |
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | Research Fellow-Joonkoo Park Lab | Amherst, MA | 04/30/2023 | $37,440 |
| University of Massachusetts | Research Fellow-Joonkoo Park Lab | Amherst, MA | 04/30/2023 | $37,440 |
| University of Kansas Medical Center | Post Doctoral Fellow | Kansas City, MO | 04/27/2023 | $47,476 |
| Dartmouth College | Post-Doctoral Fellowship | Hanover, NH | 04/26/2023 | $53,000 |
| University of South Carolina | Post Doctoral Fellow | Columbia, SC | 04/26/2023 | $53,760 |
Research Fellow Salaries FAQs
What State Pays Research Fellows The Most?
Hawaii pays Research Fellows the most in the United States, with an average salary of $71,600 per year, or $34.42 per hour.
How Do I Know If I'm Being Paid Fairly As A Research Fellow?
You know if you are being paid fairly as a Research Fellow if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in Maine you should be paid close to $67,220 per year.
How Much Do Fellowships Usually Pay?
Fellowships pay about $66,000 annually at an average experience level. Those just starting as a fellow can expect an entry-level salary of $49,000. However, entering the field with some educational experience may grant an advantage when negotiating salary, as research fellowships tend to be very academic.
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