Lab Director Salary
$45K - $58K
1% of jobs
$58K - $71K
2% of jobs
$71K - $84K
3% of jobs
$84K - $97K
8% of jobs
$106.3K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$97K - $110K
15% of jobs
$110K - $123K
19% of jobs
The median wage is $124.1K / yr.
$123K - $136K
25% of jobs
$137.8K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$136K - $149K
13% of jobs
$149K - $162K
6% of jobs
$162K - $175K
3% of jobs
$175K - $188K
6% of jobs
$45K
$124.5K
$186.5K
$126,086
/year
$60.62
/hour
Lab Director Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$126,086
Columbus
Ohio
$121,786
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How much does a Lab Director make?
As of Jul 26, 2026, the average annual pay for a Lab Director in the United States is $126,086 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $60.62 an hour. This is the equivalent of $2,424/week or $10,507/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $186,500 and as low as $45,000, the majority of Lab Director salaries currently range between $106,000 (25th percentile) to $138,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $174,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Lab Director varies greatly (by as much as 32500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Lab Director in your area makes on average $121,786 per year, or $4,300 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $126,086. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Lab Director salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Lab Director jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Lab Director on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Lab Director Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Lab Director job is above the national average. Topping the list is Santa Cruz, CA, , with Belmont, CA, and Bellingham, WA, close behind in the second and third positions. Bellingham, WA, beats the national average by $32,338 (25.6%), and Santa Cruz, CA, furthers that trend with another $70,420 (55.9%) above the $126,086 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Lab Director appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
However, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies modestly at 24% between Santa Cruz, CA, and Reston, VA, , suggesting it may be difficult to see much positive wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may help determine the balance between location and salary for a Lab Director role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Santa Cruz, CA | $196,506 | $94.47 |
Belmont, CA | $178,004 | $85.58 |
Bellingham, WA | $158,424 | $76.17 |
Mission Viejo, CA | $157,687 | $75.81 |
Whitman County, WA | $156,896 | $75.43 |
Nome, AK | $156,409 | $75.20 |
Redwood City, CA | $154,374 | $74.22 |
Pennington County, SD | $154,113 | $74.09 |
Berkeley, CA | $153,711 | $73.90 |
Reston, VA | $153,400 | $73.75 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Lab Director Jobs in the U.S.
We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Lab Director category.
For example Transplant Nephrologist jobs pay as much as $149,869 (118.9%) more than the average Lab Director salary of $126,086. If you're qualified, finding work as a Transplant Nephrologist may help you make more money than that of the average Lab Director position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Transplant Nephrologist | $275,955 | $132.67 |
Family Medicine Obstetrics | $208,152 | $100.07 |
Interventional Cardiology Physician Assistant | $158,232 | $76.07 |
International Travel Nurse | $101,132 | $48.62 |
Transplant Coordinator Assistant | $60,351 | $29.01 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
