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Director of cell biology salary

Quoted expert
Dr. Howard Whiteman

Average director of cell biology salary

$79,225

$38.09 hourly rate

Entry-level director of cell biology salary
$50,000 yearly salary
Updated January 8, 2025

Understanding the Salary of a Director of Cell Biology

The average salary for a Director of Cell Biology is approximately $79,225 per year, translating to about $38 per hour. This role is crucial in directing research teams and projects aimed at understanding cell functions and processes. Salaries can vary widely based on factors such as geographic location, years of experience, and specific industry sectors.

Salary Breakdown by State

Some states offer higher salaries due to demand and cost of living. For instance, states like California and Massachusetts often provide competitive wages for cell biologists. Additionally, cities like San Francisco and Boston are known for their higher pay scales, reflecting the concentration of biotech firms and research institutions.

Career Advancement

With experience, directors can expect salary increases, especially if they take on additional responsibilities or move to more competitive markets. Networking within the industry and pursuing further education can also lead to improved job prospects and salaries.

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Where can a Director Of Cell Biology earn more?

Compare salary by location
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112k
92k
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Columbus, OH$100,405
Lincoln, NE$62,179
Compare salary by company
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Western Digital$114,215
Thermo Fisher Scientific$82,736

Average director of cell biology salary by state

The average director of cell biology salary in Tennessee, Alaska, and Massachusetts are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average director of cell biology salary states are Mississippi, North Dakota, and Utah.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for directors of cell biology

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1Massachusetts$93,391$44.90
2Tennessee$102,720$49.38
3Maine$92,308$44.38
4New Jersey$88,569$42.58
5Alaska$100,635$48.38
6California$92,618$44.53
7Connecticut$92,160$44.31
8Montana$85,810$41.25
9Delaware$82,683$39.75
10Indiana$87,568$42.10
11Oregon$78,391$37.69
12Nevada$83,988$40.38
13Vermont$76,753$36.90
14North Carolina$73,787$35.47
15Minnesota$79,279$38.11
16Arizona$82,874$39.84
17District of Columbia$79,655$38.30
18Pennsylvania$71,470$34.36
19Colorado$73,604$35.39
20Rhode Island$75,989$36.53
21West Virginia$69,856$33.58
22Arkansas$66,039$31.75
23Hawaii$86,572$41.62
24New Hampshire$73,388$35.28
25Oklahoma$65,887$31.68
26New York$71,855$34.55
27Maryland$73,180$35.18
28Washington$68,556$32.96
29Virginia$70,490$33.89
30Wyoming$66,923$32.17
31Alabama$62,445$30.02
32Missouri$65,499$31.49
33Wisconsin$66,064$31.76
34Ohio$65,909$31.69
35Illinois$66,844$32.14
36Idaho$66,757$32.09
37Michigan$66,344$31.90
38Nebraska$62,123$29.87
39Texas$63,168$30.37
40Mississippi$57,041$27.42
41Florida$66,010$31.74
42Louisiana$54,524$26.21
43Georgia$65,943$31.70
44Iowa$47,278$22.73
45South Dakota$59,418$28.57
46New Mexico$62,109$29.86
47Kentucky$60,577$29.12
48North Dakota$56,850$27.33
49Kansas$58,653$28.20
50Utah$54,621$26.26
51South Carolina$53,899$25.91

Highest paying cities for directors of cell biology

The highest-paying cities for directors of cell biology are San Francisco, CA, Boston, MA, and Farmington, CT.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1San Francisco, CA$100,405$48.27
2Boston, MA$93,625$45.01
3Farmington, CT$92,576$44.51
4Eugene, OR$79,038$38.00
5Durham, NC$74,399$35.77
6Boulder, CO$73,583$35.38
7Baltimore, MD$73,506$35.34
8Easton, PA$72,405$34.81
9New York, NY$71,801$34.52
10Charlottesville, VA$70,176$33.74
11Seattle, WA$69,315$33.32
12North Chicago, IL$67,228$32.32
13Atlanta, GA$66,133$31.79
14Chesterfield, MO$65,564$31.52
15Columbus, OH$65,358$31.42
16Lincoln, NE$62,179$29.89

Director of cell biology salary details

A director of cell biology's salary ranges from $50,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $124,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average director of cell biology salary graph
Average director of cell biology salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a director of cell biology's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$124,000$10,333$60
75th Percentile$100,000$8,333$48
Average$79,225$6,602$38
25th Percentile$62,000$5,167$30
10th Percentile$50,000$4,167$24

Highest paying director of cell biology jobs

The highest paying types of directors of cell biology are medical science liaison, principal scientist, and senior scientist.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Researcher$67,145$5,595$32.2830,498
Research Scientist$89,998$7,500$43.2793,013
Research And Development Scientist$90,278$7,523$43.40129,803
PHD Researcher$51,634$4,303$24.8219,736
Principal Scientist$119,982$9,998$57.6880,899
Scientist$97,344$8,112$46.8062,467

How would you rate the starting salaries for Directors of cell biology, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?

Dr. Howard Whiteman

Professor of Biological Sciences, Director of the Watershed Studies Institute, Murray State University

Poor. Right now, people in these fields are not in it for the money; they do it because they have a passion for conservation, or science, or both. I do not see that changing shortly, but hope springs eternal.

Top companies hiring directors of cell biology now:

  1. IBM jobs (2)
  2. Kelly Services jobs (12)
  3. Glaxosmithkline jobs (1)
  4. Thermo Fisher Scientific jobs (4)
  5. Synthego jobs (2)

Which companies pay directors of cell biology the most?

Director of cell biology salaries at Western Digital and Genentech are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average director of cell biology salary at companies like Amgen and AbbVie are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1Western Digital$114,215$54.91
2Genentech$111,163$53.44
3Amgen$102,818$49.43
4AbbVie$102,022$49.05
5Regeneron$100,696$48.41
6Bayer$100,498$48.32
7Eli Lilly and Company$100,219$48.18
8Vertex Pharmaceuticals$98,315$47.27
9Merck$97,475$46.86
10AstraZeneca$95,305$45.82
11Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.$93,385$44.90
12Sanofi US$92,154$44.30
13Johnson & Johnson$89,197$42.88
14Kelly Services$85,117$40.92
15Intellia Therapeutics$83,443$40.12
16Eurofins$83,418$40.10
17Asimov$82,843$39.83
18DermBiont$82,843$39.83
19Celerion$82,797$39.81
20Thermo Fisher Scientific$82,736$39.78

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$78,000$77,600$77,200$76,800$76,400$76,000
MaleFemale

Director of cell biology salary trends

The average director of cell biology salary has risen by $13,315 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average director of cell biology earned $65,910 annually, but today, they earn $79,225 a year. That works out to a 14% change in pay for directors of cell biology over the last decade.

Compare director of cell biology salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average director of cell biology salary over time

Compare director of cell biology salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Director of cell biology salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2025$79,200$38.09+3.0%
2024$76,900$36.96+4.5%
2023$73,400$35.30+3.2%
2022$71,100$34.17+1.9%
2021$69,700$33.52-2.1%

Recently added director of cell biology salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
Invitrogen HoldingsScientist III, Cell BiologyGrand Island, NY06/27/2025$83,300
Thermofisher ScientificScientist III, Cell BiologyGrand Island, NY06/26/2025$83,300
Bristol Myers SquibbDirector, Cell Therapy, Medical Evidence GenerationPrinceton, NJ06/24/2025$207,490
Eli Lilly and CompanyScientific Director-Mechanistic Cell Biology-Early Molecule DiscoveryIndianapolis, IN06/19/2025$156,000
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, IlAcademic Hourly Research-Cell and Developmental Biology-MA LabUrbana, IL06/07/2025$35,479
Eli Lilly and CompanyScientific Director-Mechanistic Cell Biology-Early Molecule DiscoveryHope, IN05/18/2025$156,000
Rockefeller UniversityScientific Editor | Journal of Cell BiologyNew York, NY05/18/2025$78,000
Jackson LaboratoryAssociate Director, Single Cell BiologyFarmington, CT04/28/2025$119,533
Altos LabsScientist, In Vivo/Cell BiologySan Diego, CA04/28/2025$137,000
Abbvie, Inc.Scientist, Cell/Molecular BiologySouth San Francisco, CA04/18/2025$125,508

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