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Senior scientist salary
Average senior scientist salary
$106,672
How much does a senior scientist make?
The average senior scientist salary in the United States is $106,672. Senior scientist salaries typically range between $74,000 and $153,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for senior scientists is $51.28 per hour.
Senior scientist salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Senior scientists earn the highest average salary in California.
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Where can a Senior Scientist earn more?
Senior scientist salary estimates from across the web
Average senior scientist salary by state
The average senior scientist salary in California, Connecticut, and Maine are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average senior scientist salary states are Kentucky, Georgia, and Mississippi.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for senior scientists
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $139,883 | $67.25 |
| 2 | New Jersey | $112,400 | $54.04 |
| 3 | Connecticut | $112,942 | $54.30 |
| 4 | Washington | $106,028 | $50.98 |
| 5 | Alaska | $112,687 | $54.18 |
| 6 | Delaware | $104,380 | $50.18 |
| 7 | Maine | $112,920 | $54.29 |
| 8 | Maryland | $104,398 | $50.19 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | $101,553 | $48.82 |
| 10 | Rhode Island | $102,608 | $49.33 |
| 11 | Nevada | $112,328 | $54.00 |
| 12 | Vermont | $97,021 | $46.64 |
| 13 | Minnesota | $104,078 | $50.04 |
| 14 | Oregon | $101,449 | $48.77 |
| 15 | Arizona | $109,101 | $52.45 |
| 16 | Indiana | $106,275 | $51.09 |
| 17 | Hawaii | $105,981 | $50.95 |
| 18 | Pennsylvania | $93,604 | $45.00 |
| 19 | Illinois | $98,036 | $47.13 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $89,452 | $43.01 |
| 21 | New York | $90,317 | $43.42 |
| 22 | Tennessee | $94,602 | $45.48 |
| 23 | Montana | $85,448 | $41.08 |
| 24 | District of Columbia | $91,065 | $43.78 |
| 25 | Idaho | $85,526 | $41.12 |
| 26 | Wyoming | $80,904 | $38.90 |
| 27 | Michigan | $88,631 | $42.61 |
| 28 | North Carolina | $80,953 | $38.92 |
| 29 | Virginia | $83,861 | $40.32 |
| 30 | Ohio | $86,183 | $41.43 |
| 31 | South Dakota | $78,572 | $37.77 |
| 32 | Wisconsin | $81,986 | $39.42 |
| 33 | Florida | $84,226 | $40.49 |
| 34 | New Mexico | $75,552 | $36.32 |
| 35 | Arkansas | $78,689 | $37.83 |
| 36 | North Dakota | $71,922 | $34.58 |
| 37 | Texas | $74,847 | $35.98 |
| 38 | West Virginia | $72,713 | $34.96 |
| 39 | Utah | $71,748 | $34.49 |
| 40 | Iowa | $73,865 | $35.51 |
| 41 | Colorado | $73,617 | $35.39 |
| 42 | Alabama | $74,651 | $35.89 |
| 43 | Louisiana | $74,397 | $35.77 |
| 44 | Nebraska | $73,122 | $35.15 |
| 45 | Oklahoma | $73,094 | $35.14 |
| 46 | Kentucky | $70,953 | $34.11 |
| 47 | Kansas | $65,330 | $31.41 |
| 48 | Missouri | $60,235 | $28.96 |
| 49 | South Carolina | $65,279 | $31.38 |
| 50 | Georgia | $68,141 | $32.76 |
| 51 | Mississippi | $67,829 | $32.61 |
Highest paying cities for senior scientists
The highest-paying cities for senior scientists are Redwood City, CA, Ridgefield, CT, and Rahway, NJ.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Redwood City, CA | $149,990 | $72.11 |
| 2 | Ridgefield, CT | $112,715 | $54.19 |
| 3 | Rahway, NJ | $112,538 | $54.10 |
| 4 | Seattle, WA | $107,311 | $51.59 |
| 5 | Indianapolis, IN | $105,421 | $50.68 |
| 6 | Gaithersburg, MD | $104,157 | $50.08 |
| 7 | Minneapolis, MN | $104,068 | $50.03 |
| 8 | Boston, MA | $101,732 | $48.91 |
| 9 | North Chicago, IL | $99,406 | $47.79 |
| 10 | Philadelphia, PA | $93,946 | $45.17 |
| 11 | Albany, NY | $91,248 | $43.87 |
| 12 | Richmond, VA | $83,628 | $40.21 |
| 13 | Durham, NC | $82,150 | $39.50 |
| 14 | Madison, WI | $81,485 | $39.18 |
| 15 | Austin, TX | $77,387 | $37.21 |
| 16 | Boulder, CO | $73,758 | $35.46 |
| 17 | Atlanta, GA | $68,039 | $32.71 |
| 18 | Saint Louis, MO | $60,878 | $29.27 |
Senior Scientists are the most in-demand in these five cities:
Senior scientist salary details
A senior scientist's salary ranges from $74,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $153,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a senior scientist's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $153,000 | $12,750 | $74 |
| 75th Percentile | $129,000 | $10,750 | $62 |
| Average | $106,672 | $8,889 | $51 |
| 25th Percentile | $88,000 | $7,333 | $42 |
| 10th Percentile | $74,000 | $6,167 | $36 |
Highest paying senior scientist jobs
The highest paying types of senior scientists are medical science liaison, scientist, and staff scientist.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research Fellow | $53,823 | $4,485 | $25.88 | 59,746 |
| Quality Control Analyst | $59,217 | $4,935 | $28.47 | 85,546 |
| Chemist | $64,961 | $5,413 | $31.23 | 20,221 |
| Laboratory Analyst | $44,024 | $3,669 | $21.17 | 44,074 |
| Quality Control Chemist | $58,892 | $4,908 | $28.31 | 90,467 |
| Research And Development Chemist | $77,233 | $6,436 | $37.13 | 100,225 |
How would you rate the starting salaries for senior scientists, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Dr. Howard Whiteman
Professor of Biological Sciences, Director of the Watershed Studies Institute, Murray State University
Top companies hiring senior scientists now:
Which companies pay senior scientists the most?
Senior scientist salaries at Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Google are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior scientist salary at companies like Netflix and Roku are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation | $187,017 | $89.91 |
| 2 | $182,413 | $87.70 | |
| 3 | Netflix | $180,187 | $86.63 |
| 4 | Roku | $179,151 | $86.13 |
| 5 | eBay | $175,686 | $84.46 |
| 6 | PayPal | $174,002 | $83.65 |
| 7 | The Walt Disney Company | $173,154 | $83.25 |
| 8 | NVIDIA | $171,890 | $82.64 |
| 9 | Upstart Network | $171,748 | $82.57 |
| 10 | Grubhub | $170,849 | $82.14 |
| 11 | Waymo | $170,076 | $81.77 |
| 12 | Etsy | $167,908 | $80.72 |
| 13 | Apple | $167,535 | $80.55 |
| 14 | venn | $165,635 | $79.63 |
| 15 | Uber Technologies | $163,391 | $78.55 |
| 16 | Pixar Animation Studios | $162,036 | $77.90 |
| 17 | Dataminr | $161,988 | $77.88 |
| 18 | Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences | $161,570 | $77.68 |
| 19 | Quantcast | $161,033 | $77.42 |
| 20 | Microsoft | $160,563 | $77.19 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Senior Scientist salary by industry
The average senior scientist salary varies across industries:
- The average senior scientist salary in the telecommunication industry is $107,016, the highest of any industry.
- The average senior scientist salary in the finance industry is $104,952.
- Senior scientists in the pharmaceutical industry earn an average salary of $100,778, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for senior scientists
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Telecommunication | $107,016 | $51.45 |
| 2 | Manufacturing | $104,952 | $50.46 |
| 3 | Health Care | $104,165 | $50.08 |
| 4 | Pharmaceutical | $100,778 | $48.45 |
High paying senior scientist jobs
Senior scientist salary trends
The average senior scientist salary has risen by $17,929 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior scientist earned $88,743 annually, but today, they earn $106,672 a year. That works out to a 14% change in pay for senior scientists over the last decade.
Compare senior scientist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average senior scientist salary over time
Compare senior scientist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Senior scientist salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $107,000 | $51.28 | +3.0% |
| 2024 | $104,000 | $49.76 | +4.5% |
| 2023 | $98,900 | $47.53 | +3.2% |
| 2022 | $95,700 | $46.01 | +1.9% |
| 2021 | $93,900 | $45.13 | -2.1% |
Recently added senior scientist salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exact Sciences | Senior Scientist, Technical Transfer | Madison, WI | 06/30/2025 | $85,000 |
| Exelixis | Senior Scientist I (Analytical Chemistry) | Alameda, CA | 06/30/2025 | $116,000 |
| Tate & Lyle | SR Scientist | Hoffman Estates, IL | 06/30/2025 | $96,075 |
| Mdlz | Senior Scientist I-Triscuit Brand Steward | East Hanover, NJ | 06/30/2025 | $83,800 |
| Amneal Pharmaceuticals | Senior Scientist, Manufacturing Science & Technology | Brookhaven, NY | 06/29/2025 | $115,000 |
| Qualtrics | Senior Applied Scientist | Seattle, WA | 06/29/2025 | $172,000 |
| Perspecta | Senior Research Scientist-Software Defined Radio | College Park, MD | 06/29/2025 | $146,000 |
| St. Jude Children's Research Hospital | Cryo-Em Senior Scientist In Blue Sky Protein Kinases | Memphis, TN | 06/29/2025 | $86,320 |
| ZP Group | Senior Scientist (Kidney Physiology) | Minneapolis, MN | 06/29/2025 | $115,000 |
| Legend Biotech | SR. Scientist of Immunology | Somerset, NJ | 06/29/2025 | $123,605 |
Senior scientist salary FAQs
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