Scientist earnings by seniority

90th percentile

Top-level scientist earnings begin at:

$58.77 per hour

$122,235 per year

75th percentile

Senior-level scientist earnings begin at:

$45.20 per hour

$94,019 per year

50th percentile

Mid-level scientist earnings begin at:

$33.77 per hour

$70,238 per year

25th percentile

Junior-level scientist earnings begin at:

$25.23 per hour

$52,473 per year

10th percentile

Starting level scientist earnings begin at:

$19.40 per hour

$40,360 per year

Approximate values based on highest and lowest earning segments.

Scientist salary by state

State Name Average Salary
Maryland $94,553
New Jersey $87,997
Connecticut $86,938
Delaware $84,106
Massachusetts $83,691
New Hampshire $82,421
Virginia $81,690
New York $81,407
Alaska $81,231
Colorado $80,514
Rhode Island $79,724
Hawaii $79,417
Illinois $77,949
Pennsylvania $77,837
New Mexico $77,603
Washington $77,513
Nevada $77,402
Oklahoma $75,474
Arizona $74,734
Georgia $74,328
Oregon $74,174
Texas $74,130
Michigan $73,762
Florida $73,608
Ohio $73,383
Minnesota $72,879
Mississippi $72,771
Guam $72,445
North Carolina $72,356
North Dakota $70,845
Nebraska $70,811
Alabama $70,051
Idaho $69,762
Iowa $69,412
Wyoming $69,311
Tennessee $69,271
Utah $69,106
Vermont $68,737
South Carolina $68,702
Montana $68,654
Wisconsin $68,510
Louisiana $67,341
Maine $67,110
Missouri $66,306
Indiana $65,851
Arkansas $64,947
West Virginia $64,497
Kentucky $63,999
Kansas $63,762
South Dakota $59,719
Puerto Rico $54,194
California $44,960
District of Columbia $101,742

How do scientist salaries compare to similar careers?

Scientists earn about the same as related careers in the United States. On average, they make less than chemists but more than historians.

Career Median Salary
Chemist salary $72K
Climate change analyst salary $71K
Industrial ecologist salary $71K
Environmental restoration planner salary $71K
Environmental consultant salary $71K
Scientist salary $70K
Biologist salary $69K
Food science technologist salary $69K
Soil and plant scientist salary $63K
Historian salary $64K

Source: CareerExplorer (Aggregated)