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Quality control microbiologist salary
Average quality control microbiologist salary
$55,202
Average Salary Insights
The average salary for a quality control microbiologist stands at $55,202 per year. This figure can fluctuate based on various factors such as geographic location, level of experience, and the specific industry. For instance, microbiologists in pharmaceutical manufacturing typically see higher salaries compared to those in food testing laboratories.
Highest Paying States
States like California and New York offer some of the highest salaries for quality control microbiologists, often exceeding $70,000 annually. In contrast, states with less demand for this role may offer salaries closer to $45,000.
Salary Over Time
As professionals gain experience and specialize in areas like microbial testing or quality assurance, their earning potential increases. Entry-level positions may start around $40,000, but with several years of experience, salaries can rise significantly, reflecting the growing demand for expertise in this field.
Understanding these salary dynamics can be helpful for prospective employees seeking to negotiate their worth in the job market.
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Where can a Quality Control Microbiologist earn more?
Quality control microbiologist salary estimates from across the web
Average quality control microbiologist salary by state
The highest-paying states for quality control microbiologists are Virginia, Massachusetts, and California. The lowest average quality control microbiologist salary states are Nebraska, Mississippi, and Arkansas.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for quality control microbiologists
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $74,664 | $35.90 |
| 2 | Virginia | $77,000 | $37.02 |
| 3 | New Jersey | $70,103 | $33.70 |
| 4 | New Hampshire | $57,953 | $27.86 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $75,798 | $36.44 |
| 6 | Maryland | $62,772 | $30.18 |
| 7 | Georgia | $67,951 | $32.67 |
| 8 | Connecticut | $58,398 | $28.08 |
| 9 | Rhode Island | $58,389 | $28.07 |
| 10 | Delaware | $57,401 | $27.60 |
| 11 | Vermont | $73,897 | $35.53 |
| 12 | North Dakota | $67,503 | $32.45 |
| 13 | New York | $60,248 | $28.97 |
| 14 | Pennsylvania | $53,310 | $25.63 |
| 15 | Kentucky | $52,935 | $25.45 |
| 16 | Michigan | $51,719 | $24.86 |
| 17 | West Virginia | $56,873 | $27.34 |
| 18 | Wisconsin | $45,468 | $21.86 |
| 19 | Nevada | $52,000 | $25.00 |
| 20 | Arizona | $51,435 | $24.73 |
| 21 | Washington | $48,114 | $23.13 |
| 22 | Minnesota | $46,156 | $22.19 |
| 23 | Maine | $52,658 | $25.32 |
| 24 | North Carolina | $44,213 | $21.26 |
| 25 | Illinois | $48,280 | $23.21 |
| 26 | Tennessee | $45,873 | $22.05 |
| 27 | Colorado | $51,300 | $24.66 |
| 28 | Iowa | $46,177 | $22.20 |
| 29 | Oregon | $46,575 | $22.39 |
| 30 | Indiana | $43,566 | $20.95 |
| 31 | District of Columbia | $55,948 | $26.90 |
| 32 | Alabama | $43,929 | $21.12 |
| 33 | Ohio | $43,054 | $20.70 |
| 34 | Oklahoma | $46,496 | $22.35 |
| 35 | Wyoming | $43,758 | $21.04 |
| 36 | Utah | $40,013 | $19.24 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $49,024 | $23.57 |
| 38 | Missouri | $42,866 | $20.61 |
| 39 | Montana | $43,955 | $21.13 |
| 40 | South Carolina | $39,101 | $18.80 |
| 41 | Alaska | $44,260 | $21.28 |
| 42 | Texas | $39,608 | $19.04 |
| 43 | Florida | $41,817 | $20.10 |
| 44 | Idaho | $42,382 | $20.38 |
| 45 | Mississippi | $38,953 | $18.73 |
| 46 | New Mexico | $39,698 | $19.09 |
| 47 | Nebraska | $38,977 | $18.74 |
| 48 | Arkansas | $37,589 | $18.07 |
| 49 | Kansas | $35,813 | $17.22 |
| 50 | South Dakota | $35,827 | $17.22 |
| 51 | Louisiana | $35,529 | $17.08 |
Highest paying cities for quality control microbiologists
The highest-paying cities for quality control microbiologists are South San Francisco, CA, Framingham, MA, and Atlanta, GA.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South San Francisco, CA | $78,933 | $37.95 |
| 2 | Framingham, MA | $75,865 | $36.47 |
| 3 | Atlanta, GA | $68,027 | $32.71 |
| 4 | Baltimore, MD | $63,147 | $30.36 |
| 5 | Riverhead, NY | $60,427 | $29.05 |
| 6 | Farmington, CT | $58,427 | $28.09 |
| 7 | Bristol, PA | $53,832 | $25.88 |
| 8 | Denver, CO | $51,342 | $24.68 |
| 9 | Lynnwood, WA | $48,401 | $23.27 |
| 10 | Chaska, MN | $45,982 | $22.11 |
| 11 | Huntsville, AL | $44,159 | $21.23 |
| 12 | Jeffersonville, IN | $42,610 | $20.49 |
| 13 | Boca Raton, FL | $42,113 | $20.25 |
| 14 | Idaho Falls, ID | $40,937 | $19.68 |
| 15 | Pleasant Grove, UT | $39,953 | $19.21 |
| 16 | Houston, TX | $39,819 | $19.14 |
| 17 | Little Rock, AR | $37,638 | $18.10 |
Quality control microbiologist salary details
A quality control microbiologist's salary ranges from $38,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $79,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a quality control microbiologist's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $79,000 | $6,583 | $38 |
| 75th Percentile | $66,000 | $5,500 | $32 |
| Average | $55,202 | $4,600 | $27 |
| 25th Percentile | $45,000 | $3,750 | $22 |
| 10th Percentile | $38,000 | $3,167 | $18 |
Highest paying quality control microbiologist jobs
The highest paying types of quality control microbiologists are senior scientist, scientist, and senior chemist.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laboratory Analyst | $44,024 | $3,669 | $21.17 | 44,074 |
| Chemist | $64,961 | $5,413 | $31.23 | 20,221 |
| Research And Development Chemist | $77,233 | $6,436 | $37.13 | 100,225 |
| Research Chemist | $75,843 | $6,320 | $36.46 | 53,769 |
| Chemical Technician | $42,584 | $3,549 | $20.47 | 40,191 |
| Research Scientist | $89,998 | $7,500 | $43.27 | 93,013 |
How would you rate the starting salaries for quality control microbiologists, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Patrick Schlievert Ph.D.
Chair, Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Professor of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa
These are proportionately scaled down for nine-month appointments, but you can generate additional summer salary from grants. If you go with a start-up, your salary will likely also be in the $100K range, but you will probably also have to write SBIR grant applications, generating additional wages. The critical thing with small companies is that you can gain experience that may get you the desired job in a large company. I became chair of M&I because I wanted to help the faculty! That is my only desired legacy. That is often not why chairs are hired, though. Department chairs in large universities often make $250K to $350K; this is quite acceptable.
Top companies hiring quality control microbiologists now:
Which companies pay quality control microbiologists the most?
Quality control microbiologist salaries at Battelle and Novo Nordisk are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average quality control microbiologist salary at companies like Novozymes and Sanofi US are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Battelle | $68,270 | $32.82 |
| 2 | Novo Nordisk | $66,810 | $32.12 |
| 3 | Novozymes | $57,692 | $27.74 |
| 4 | Sanofi US | $57,241 | $27.52 |
| 5 | HRU Technical Resources | $57,183 | $27.49 |
| 6 | Melaleuca:The Wellness | $56,680 | $27.25 |
| 7 | Stryker | $56,677 | $27.25 |
| 8 | Neogen | $56,458 | $27.14 |
| 9 | United Therapeutics | $56,435 | $27.13 |
| 10 | Pharmaceutics International | $55,729 | $26.79 |
| 11 | Eurofins | $54,006 | $25.96 |
| 12 | Partner Therapeutics | $53,662 | $25.80 |
| 13 | Solvay America Inc | $52,788 | $25.38 |
| 14 | Lifecore | $52,690 | $25.33 |
| 15 | STAQ PHARMA | $52,688 | $25.33 |
| 16 | Freudenberg Medical | $52,673 | $25.32 |
| 17 | Planet Pharma | $52,458 | $25.22 |
| 18 | Applied Genetics Technologies Corporation | $51,857 | $24.93 |
| 19 | ADMA Biologics | $51,077 | $24.56 |
| 20 | Randstad North America, Inc. | $50,567 | $24.31 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Quality control microbiologist salary trends
The average quality control microbiologist salary has risen by $12,538 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average quality control microbiologist earned $42,664 annually, but today, they earn $55,202 a year. That works out to a 26% change in pay for quality control microbiologists over the last decade.
Compare quality control microbiologist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average quality control microbiologist salary over time
Compare quality control microbiologist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Quality control microbiologist salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $55,200 | $26.54 | +10.4% |
| 2024 | $49,500 | $23.79 | +5.3% |
| 2023 | $46,900 | $22.53 | +2.4% |
| 2022 | $45,800 | $22.00 | +4.4% |
| 2021 | $43,700 | $21.02 | -1.0% |
Recently added quality control microbiologist salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lifecore Biomedical Inc. | QC Microbiologist I-2Nd Shift | Chaska, MN | 06/29/2025 | $57,000 |
| ADM | Associate Quality Control Microbiologist | Kennesaw, GA | 06/27/2025 | $39,200 |
| Actalent | QC Microbiologist | Saint Louis, MO | 06/27/2025 | $45,914 |
| Kelly Services | QC Microbiologists | Sacramento, CA | 06/24/2025 | $39,653 |
| Kelly Services | Quality Microbiologist | Bristol, PA | 06/21/2025 | $62,610 |
| Cardinal Health | Quality Control Microbiologist | Indianapolis, IN | 06/20/2025 | $67,500 |
| Tekwissen | QC Microbiologist | Houston, TX | 05/30/2025 | $52,175 |
| Actalent | QC Microbiologist | Easton, MD | 05/26/2025 | $56,349 |
| American Regent | QC Microbiologist I | Shirley, NY | 05/25/2025 | $70,353 |
| Kelly Services | Quality Control-Microbiologist | Carlsbad, CA | 05/06/2025 | $56,349 |
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