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Process chemist salary
Average process chemist salary
$81,542
Understanding Process Chemist Salaries
The average salary of a Process Chemist is approximately $81,542 per year. This figure can vary based on a number of factors such as geographic location, industry, and years of experience. For instance, those working in the pharmaceutical industry typically earn more compared to their counterparts in manufacturing.
In terms of location, states like California and Texas often offer higher salaries due to the concentration of relevant industries. Cities such as San Francisco and New York are known for competitive compensation packages, making them attractive destinations for Process Chemists.
Factors Influencing Salaries
Experience also plays a significant role in determining salary. Entry-level positions may start around $60,000, while seasoned professionals with advanced degrees can command salaries exceeding $100,000. Specializations within the field, including roles focused on research and development, can further influence earnings.
Overall, the demand for skilled Process Chemists continues to rise as industries expand, creating numerous job opportunities. Stay informed about salary trends to effectively negotiate your compensation.
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Where can a Process Chemist earn more?
Average process chemist salary by state
The highest-paying states for process chemists are Delaware, Maryland, and Washington. The lowest average process chemist salary states are North Dakota, Nebraska, and Hawaii.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for process chemists
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delaware | $107,886 | $51.87 |
| 2 | Maryland | $100,302 | $48.22 |
| 3 | Massachusetts | $92,480 | $44.46 |
| 4 | District of Columbia | $103,429 | $49.73 |
| 5 | Washington | $97,507 | $46.88 |
| 6 | Rhode Island | $87,908 | $42.26 |
| 7 | New Jersey | $88,143 | $42.38 |
| 8 | New York | $89,420 | $42.99 |
| 9 | Missouri | $83,400 | $40.10 |
| 10 | Tennessee | $90,933 | $43.72 |
| 11 | Pennsylvania | $79,737 | $38.34 |
| 12 | Oklahoma | $92,894 | $44.66 |
| 13 | Ohio | $79,774 | $38.35 |
| 14 | Indiana | $78,910 | $37.94 |
| 15 | Virginia | $87,497 | $42.07 |
| 16 | New Mexico | $81,458 | $39.16 |
| 17 | Vermont | $86,773 | $41.72 |
| 18 | Utah | $79,824 | $38.38 |
| 19 | West Virginia | $81,807 | $39.33 |
| 20 | Kentucky | $78,679 | $37.83 |
| 21 | Connecticut | $83,184 | $39.99 |
| 22 | North Carolina | $76,079 | $36.58 |
| 23 | Iowa | $76,759 | $36.90 |
| 24 | South Carolina | $80,367 | $38.64 |
| 25 | Minnesota | $78,487 | $37.73 |
| 26 | Texas | $78,025 | $37.51 |
| 27 | New Hampshire | $72,900 | $35.05 |
| 28 | Kansas | $74,669 | $35.90 |
| 29 | Idaho | $74,397 | $35.77 |
| 30 | Georgia | $76,639 | $36.85 |
| 31 | Michigan | $72,872 | $35.03 |
| 32 | California | $72,396 | $34.81 |
| 33 | Oregon | $70,166 | $33.73 |
| 34 | Nevada | $73,494 | $35.33 |
| 35 | Wisconsin | $65,692 | $31.58 |
| 36 | Illinois | $68,078 | $32.73 |
| 37 | Alabama | $69,690 | $33.50 |
| 38 | Colorado | $71,528 | $34.39 |
| 39 | Arizona | $68,222 | $32.80 |
| 40 | Mississippi | $69,782 | $33.55 |
| 41 | Montana | $70,912 | $34.09 |
| 42 | Arkansas | $65,159 | $31.33 |
| 43 | Alaska | $66,571 | $32.01 |
| 44 | Louisiana | $69,056 | $33.20 |
| 45 | North Dakota | $61,878 | $29.75 |
| 46 | Florida | $62,901 | $30.24 |
| 47 | Hawaii | $56,947 | $27.38 |
| 48 | Nebraska | $60,406 | $29.04 |
| 49 | Maine | $51,294 | $24.66 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $52,137 | $25.07 |
| 51 | South Dakota | $50,683 | $24.37 |
Highest paying cities for process chemists
The highest-paying cities for process chemists are Wilmington, DE, Bothell, WA, and Kingsport, TN.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wilmington, DE | $108,064 | $51.95 |
| 2 | Bothell, WA | $97,134 | $46.70 |
| 3 | Kingsport, TN | $93,945 | $45.17 |
| 4 | New York, NY | $89,967 | $43.25 |
| 5 | Richmond, VA | $87,428 | $42.03 |
| 6 | Saint Louis, MO | $84,936 | $40.83 |
| 7 | Cleveland, OH | $80,513 | $38.71 |
| 8 | Carlsbad, NM | $79,846 | $38.39 |
| 9 | Hayward, CA | $79,544 | $38.24 |
| 10 | Indianapolis, IN | $78,888 | $37.93 |
| 11 | Houston, TX | $75,808 | $36.45 |
| 12 | Huntsville, AL | $71,482 | $34.37 |
| 13 | Bend, OR | $70,629 | $33.96 |
| 14 | Baton Rouge, LA | $68,893 | $33.12 |
| 15 | Gilbert, AZ | $68,290 | $32.83 |
| 16 | Chicago Heights, IL | $68,277 | $32.83 |
| 17 | Miami Lakes, FL | $59,751 | $28.73 |
Process chemist salary details
A process chemist's salary ranges from $54,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $121,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a process chemist's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $121,000 | $10,083 | $58 |
| 75th Percentile | $100,000 | $8,333 | $48 |
| Average | $81,542 | $6,795 | $39 |
| 25th Percentile | $66,000 | $5,500 | $32 |
| 10th Percentile | $54,000 | $4,500 | $26 |
Highest paying process chemist jobs
The highest paying types of process chemists are scientist, staff scientist, and senior chemist.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Control | $32,824 | $2,735 | $15.78 | 83,496 |
| Quality Control Analyst | $59,217 | $4,935 | $28.47 | 85,546 |
| Quality Control Coordinator | $49,894 | $4,158 | $23.99 | 88,145 |
| Postdoctoral Scholar | $57,587 | $4,799 | $27.69 | 18,983 |
| Chemical Technician | $42,584 | $3,549 | $20.47 | 40,191 |
| Laboratory Analyst | $44,024 | $3,669 | $21.17 | 44,074 |
Top companies hiring process chemists now:
Which companies pay process chemists the most?
Process chemist salaries at Bio-Rad Laboratories and Entegris are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average process chemist salary at companies like Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bio-Rad Laboratories | $112,698 | $54.18 |
| 2 | Entegris | $112,528 | $54.10 |
| 3 | Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory | $105,357 | $50.65 |
| 4 | Los Alamos National Laboratory | $102,957 | $49.50 |
| 5 | The Wonderful Company | $102,872 | $49.46 |
| 6 | Celanese | $102,629 | $49.34 |
| 7 | Eastman | $101,943 | $49.01 |
| 8 | Evonik | $101,206 | $48.66 |
| 9 | DuPont | $98,232 | $47.23 |
| 10 | TPC Group | $95,901 | $46.11 |
| 11 | Corteva | $93,728 | $45.06 |
| 12 | SABIC Innovative Plastics | $93,234 | $44.82 |
| 13 | Sensient Technologies | $88,462 | $42.53 |
| 14 | Cambrex | $87,411 | $42.02 |
| 15 | Aerojet Rocketdyne | $82,738 | $39.78 |
| 16 | BioLife Solutions | $81,488 | $39.18 |
| 17 | Sherwin-Williams | $81,259 | $39.07 |
| 18 | Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc. | $80,615 | $38.76 |
| 19 | Ascend Performance Materials Holdings Inc | $79,948 | $38.44 |
| 20 | Kodak | $78,168 | $37.58 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Process Chemist salary by industry
The average process chemist salary varies across industries:
- The average process chemist salary in the manufacturing industry is $86,118, the highest of any industry.
- The average process chemist salary in the finance industry is $79,043.
- Process chemists in the hospitality industry earn an average salary of $67,904, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for process chemists
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manufacturing | $86,118 | $41.40 |
| 2 | Technology | $79,043 | $38.00 |
| 3 | Pharmaceutical | $76,293 | $36.68 |
| 4 | Hospitality | $67,904 | $32.65 |
High paying process chemist jobs
Process chemist salary trends
The average process chemist salary has risen by $9,810 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average process chemist earned $71,732 annually, but today, they earn $81,542 a year. That works out to a 8% change in pay for process chemists over the last decade.
Compare process chemist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average process chemist salary over time
Compare process chemist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Process chemist salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $81,500 | $39.20 | +2.1% |
| 2025 | $79,800 | $38.38 | +1.0% |
| 2024 | $79,100 | $38.01 | +2.8% |
| 2023 | $76,900 | $36.95 | +1.3% |
| 2022 | $75,800 | $36.45 | +3.4% |
Recently added process chemist salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eli Lilly and Company | Advisor-Process Translation and Execution Chemist Lilly Medicine Foundry | Indianapolis, IN | 06/25/2025 | $121,500 |
| Nj Bio | Process & GMP Manufacturing Chemist III | Princeton, NJ | 06/20/2025 | $100,000 |
| Prime Matter Labs | Process Engineering Chemist | Torrance, CA | 06/11/2025 | $45,000 |
| Eli Lilly and Company | Advisor-Analytical Early Phase Process Chemist | Louisville, CO | 03/09/2025 | $133,500 |
| Covestro AG | Pilot/Process Chemist | Elgin, IL | 02/19/2025 | $56,280 |
| Covestro | Pilot/Process Chemist | Elgin, IL | 02/18/2025 | $56,280 |
| Cordenpharma International | Principal Process Chemist-Peptides | Boulder, CO | 02/17/2025 | $114,760 |
| Steel Dynamics, Inc. | Process Chemist | Butler, IN | 02/10/2025 | $126,824 |
| Steel Dynamics, Inc. | Process Chemist | Fort Wayne, IN | 02/10/2025 | $126,824 |
| Ortho Clinical Diagnostics | Associate Process Group Chemist | Carlsbad, CA | 12/15/2024 | $58,436 |
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