The average salary for a research scientist in the United States is $89,998. Research scientist salaries typically range between $58,000 and $137,000 a year. The average hourly rate for research scientists is $43.27 per hour.
Location, education, and experience impacts how much a research scientist can expect to make. Research scientists make the most in California, Hawaii, Indiana, Connecticut, and New Jersey.
Rank | State | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Count |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | California | $117,928 | $56.70 | 6,711 |
2 | New Jersey | $92,492 | $44.47 | 1,496 |
3 | Connecticut | $94,575 | $45.47 | 538 |
4 | Delaware | $87,389 | $42.01 | 228 |
5 | Hawaii | $102,340 | $49.20 | 126 |
6 | Maine | $92,271 | $44.36 | 172 |
7 | Rhode Island | $84,269 | $40.51 | 189 |
8 | Indiana | $98,309 | $47.26 | 705 |
9 | Vermont | $79,112 | $38.03 | 143 |
10 | Tennessee | $88,781 | $42.68 | 689 |
11 | Massachusetts | $80,074 | $38.50 | 3,056 |
12 | Oregon | $80,367 | $38.64 | 763 |
13 | Pennsylvania | $78,031 | $37.51 | 1,798 |
14 | Maryland | $82,704 | $39.76 | 1,171 |
15 | Washington | $81,104 | $38.99 | 1,136 |
16 | Minnesota | $82,962 | $39.89 | 884 |
17 | New York | $76,198 | $36.63 | 2,637 |
18 | Arizona | $78,755 | $37.86 | 745 |
19 | Wyoming | $72,067 | $34.65 | 93 |
20 | Illinois | $74,001 | $35.58 | 1,861 |
21 | Nevada | $78,449 | $37.72 | 168 |
22 | New Hampshire | $71,381 | $34.32 | 264 |
23 | Wisconsin | $72,139 | $34.68 | 693 |
24 | Alaska | $79,047 | $38.00 | 88 |
25 | District of Columbia | $76,536 | $36.80 | 246 |
26 | Michigan | $70,290 | $33.79 | 913 |
27 | North Carolina | $66,856 | $32.14 | 1,321 |
28 | West Virginia | $68,758 | $33.06 | 161 |
29 | Virginia | $64,483 | $31.00 | 1,640 |
30 | Montana | $66,855 | $32.14 | 154 |
31 | South Dakota | $61,827 | $29.72 | 171 |
32 | Ohio | $66,183 | $31.82 | 1,078 |
33 | Colorado | $61,787 | $29.71 | 1,046 |
34 | Arkansas | $66,196 | $31.82 | 190 |
35 | Iowa | $64,996 | $31.25 | 335 |
36 | Idaho | $59,968 | $28.83 | 219 |
37 | Kansas | $62,799 | $30.19 | 346 |
38 | Kentucky | $62,903 | $30.24 | 294 |
39 | North Dakota | $57,046 | $27.43 | 116 |
40 | Nebraska | $58,079 | $27.92 | 265 |
41 | Oklahoma | $61,638 | $29.63 | 249 |
42 | Florida | $58,883 | $28.31 | 1,938 |
43 | Utah | $51,336 | $24.68 | 441 |
44 | New Mexico | $49,029 | $23.57 | 299 |
45 | Missouri | $51,038 | $24.54 | 740 |
46 | Georgia | $53,742 | $25.84 | 1,102 |
47 | Alabama | $56,271 | $27.05 | 280 |
48 | South Carolina | $55,475 | $26.67 | 342 |
49 | Texas | $49,053 | $23.58 | 2,263 |
50 | Mississippi | $48,194 | $23.17 | 149 |
51 | Louisiana | $45,093 | $21.68 | 260 |
Rank | City | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Count |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Menlo Park, CA | $124,477 | $59.84 | 1 |
2 | Indianapolis, IN | $98,052 | $47.14 | 11 |
3 | Newark, NJ | $92,744 | $44.59 | 3 |
4 | Oak Ridge, TN | $91,185 | $43.84 | |
5 | Newark, DE | $87,528 | $42.08 | 3 |
6 | Seattle, WA | $81,884 | $39.37 | 86 |
7 | Albany, OR | $81,025 | $38.95 | |
8 | Boston, MA | $80,225 | $38.57 | 42 |
9 | Albany, NY | $76,678 | $36.86 | |
10 | Washington, DC | $76,649 | $36.85 | 18 |
11 | Pittsburgh, PA | $76,389 | $36.73 | 6 |
12 | Chicago, IL | $74,316 | $35.73 | 14 |
13 | Milwaukee, WI | $72,316 | $34.77 | 2 |
14 | Detroit, MI | $70,511 | $33.90 | 5 |
15 | Durham, NC | $67,854 | $32.62 | 10 |
Here Are The Five Most In Demand Cities Right Now:
Percentile | Annual Salary | Monthly Salary | Hourly Rate |
---|---|---|---|
90th Percentile | $137,000 | $11,417 | $66 |
75th Percentile | $112,000 | $9,333 | $54 |
Average | $89,998 | $7,500 | $43 |
25th Percentile | $71,000 | $5,917 | $34 |
10th Percentile | $58,000 | $4,833 | $28 |
Job Title | Annual Salary | Monthly Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
---|---|---|---|---|
Chemist | $64,961 | $5,413 | $31.23 | 20,221 |
Research Laboratory Technician | $38,308 | $3,192 | $18.42 | 86,476 |
Graduate Research Student | $34,658 | $2,888 | $16.66 | 58,921 |
Research Fellow | $53,823 | $4,485 | $25.88 | 59,746 |
Researcher | $67,145 | $5,595 | $32.28 | 30,498 |
Research Technician | $43,034 | $3,586 | $20.69 | 64,786 |
Here are the five companies hiring the most now:
Rank | Company | Average Salary | Hourly Rate | Job Openings |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lyft | $175,144 | $84.20 | 1 |
2 | Flexport | $174,532 | $83.91 | 2 |
3 | Meta | $171,477 | $82.44 | 475 |
4 | Netflix | $168,720 | $81.12 | 8 |
5 | StubHub | $167,700 | $80.63 | |
6 | $167,427 | $80.49 | 59 | |
7 | DoorDash | $166,792 | $80.19 | 8 |
8 | eBay | $166,231 | $79.92 | 14 |
9 | Waymo | $163,156 | $78.44 | 5 |
10 | NVIDIA | $162,497 | $78.12 | 16 |
11 | ByteDance | $162,333 | $78.04 | |
12 | Instacart | $161,968 | $77.87 | |
13 | Microsoft | $160,153 | $77.00 | 115 |
14 | Grubhub | $159,808 | $76.83 | |
15 | Didi Chuxing | $156,104 | $75.05 | |
16 | PayPal | $155,323 | $74.67 | 18 |
17 | Uber Technologies | $154,475 | $74.27 | |
18 | $151,867 | $73.01 | 2 | |
19 | Apple | $149,805 | $72.02 | 53 |
20 | Neuralink IT Solutions | $149,601 | $71.92 |
Compare salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Year | Avg. Salary | Hourly Rate | % Change |
---|---|---|---|
2023 | $90,000 | $43.27 | +3.0% |
2022 | $87,300 | $41.98 | +4.5% |
2021 | $83,400 | $40.10 | +3.2% |
2020 | $80,700 | $38.81 | +1.9% |
2019 | $79,200 | $38.08 | -2.1% |
Company | Job | Location | Date Added | Salary |
---|---|---|---|---|
KLA | Light Induced Damage and Materials Research Scientist | Milpitas, CA | 05/02/2023 | $115,900 |
Snap | Research Scientist, Natural Language Processing | Los Angeles, CA | 05/02/2023 | $175,000 |
Novetta | Research Scientist | Annapolis, MD | 05/02/2023 | $121,700 |
Takeda Pharmaceutical | Research Principal Scientist, Inflammation Discovery Research | San Diego, CA | 05/02/2023 | $143,500 |
Group14 Technologies | Research Scientist (Electrochemistry) | Woodinville, WA | 05/02/2023 | $80,000 |
Leidos | Research/Quantum Scientist | Cabin John, MD | 05/01/2023 | $97,500 |
Leidos | Research/Quantum Scientist | Fairfax, VA | 05/01/2023 | $97,500 |
Leidos | Research Physiologist II-Kinesiologist/Exercise Scientist | Dayton, OH | 05/01/2023 | $78,000 |
Accenture Federal Services-National Security Portfolio | Research Scientist | Annapolis, MD | 05/01/2023 | $121,700 |
Health Research, Inc. | Research Scientist III | Albany, NY | 05/01/2023 | $88,387 |
California pays Research Scientists the most in the United States, with an average salary of $117,928 per year, or $56.70 per hour.
You know if you are being paid fairly as a Research Scientist if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in Hawaii you should be paid close to $102,340 per year.
Ph.D. scientists make $99,460 a year. However, it can start as low as $65,000 to as high as $165,000 a year. Factors such as the number of years of experience, the field of study, and the geographic location of the position all have the potential to impact earning potential.
A research scientist makes $52,799 a year starting out. However, this can range from as low as $25,000 a year to as high as $115,000 a year. Factors such as the number of years of experience, location, and type of research scientist may impact earning potential.
A research scientist with a Ph.D. makes $99,460 a year. However, it can start as low as $65,000 to as high as $206,379 a year.
One factor related to the significant differences in earning potential for a Ph.D. research scientist is whether they work in academia or industry. A scientist working in academia, for instance, can expect to earn 30% less than a Ph.D. research scientist working in the industry.
A researcher makes an average of $64,000 a year. However, this amount can vary from $34,000 to $200,000 a year. A significant factor determining how much a researcher can make has to do with the type of researcher they are and the company for which they work.
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