Lab Scientist Salary
$20K - $27K
1% of jobs
$27K - $34K
4% of jobs
$40.3K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$34K - $41K
21% of jobs
$41K - $48K
23% of jobs
The median wage is $48.1K / yr.
$48K - $55K
23% of jobs
$56.8K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$55K - $62K
10% of jobs
$62K - $69K
8% of jobs
$69K - $76K
5% of jobs
$76K - $83K
3% of jobs
$83K - $90K
2% of jobs
$90K - $97K
1% of jobs
$20K
$47.5K
$94.5K
$52,516
/year
$25.25
/hour
Lab Scientist Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$52,516
Columbus
Ohio
$50,725
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How much does a Lab Scientist make?
As of Aug 3, 2026, the average annual pay for a Lab Scientist in the United States is $52,516 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $25.25 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,009/week or $4,376/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $94,500 and as low as $20,000, the majority of Lab Scientist salaries currently range between $40,000 (25th percentile) to $58,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $74,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Lab Scientist varies greatly (by as much as 18000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Lab Scientist in your area makes on average $50,725 per year, or $1,791 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $52,516. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Lab Scientist salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Lab Scientist jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Lab Scientist on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Lab Scientist Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Lab Scientist job is above the national average. Topping the list is Honolulu County, HI, , with Sitka, AK, and South San Francisco, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. South San Francisco, CA, beats the national average by $10,537 (20.1%), and Honolulu County, HI, furthers that trend with another $12,939 (24.6%) above the $52,516 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Lab Scientist appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 5% between Honolulu County, HI, and Palo Alto, CA, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for a Lab Scientist role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Honolulu County, HI | $65,455 | $31.47 |
Sitka, AK | $63,265 | $30.42 |
South San Francisco, CA | $63,053 | $30.31 |
Mountain View, CA | $61,952 | $29.78 |
San Francisco Bay Area, CA | $61,873 | $29.75 |
San Francisco, CA | $61,873 | $29.75 |
Oak Bluffs, MA | $61,834 | $29.73 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $61,824 | $29.72 |
Stanford, CA | $61,784 | $29.70 |
Palo Alto, CA | $61,734 | $29.68 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Lab Scientist Jobs in the U.S.
We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Lab Scientist category.
For example Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer jobs pay as much as $40,039 (76.2%) more than the average Lab Scientist salary of $52,516. If you're qualified, finding work as a Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer may help you make more money than that of the average Lab Scientist position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Medical Laboratory Scientific Officer | $92,555 | $44.50 |
Research And Development Lab Technician | $54,192 | $26.05 |
Chemist Laboratory Technician | $52,516 | $25.25 |
Laboratory Support Technician | $48,570 | $23.35 |
Microbiology | $43,914 | $21.11 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
