2024 Research Scientist Salary Guide

Research scientists conduct research experiments and collect information and evidence for analysis. As a research scientist, you have various career options in several fields like medicine, social science, and computer science. 

Given these factors, salaries across research scientist positions can vary widely. As you consider your career path, explore the types of research scientist roles available and their salaries.

What is a research scientist?

A research scientist plans and executes experiments and research in their chosen field. Depending on the field, this may be performed in a laboratory setting. For those focusing on computer science, work often takes place online.

A research scientist's daily responsibilities include setting up and managing experiments, analyzing data, presenting findings, and writing research for journals and publications. In some cases, research scientists also write grant proposals to gain funding. 

Read more: Research Scientist: What Is It, How to Become One, Where You Can Work, and More

What is the average research scientist salary?

According to various job sites, the average annual salary for a research scientist in the United States ranges from $88,465 to $130,117 [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]:

Research scientists can also make additional earnings, separate from their base pay. Glassdoor estimates additional pay to be in the range of $35,302, which might be from bonuses, commissions, profit sharing, or other benefits [1].

*All salary data as of November 2024

Factors that affect salary

As a research scientist, your salary typically increases as you gain experience and level up. Still, it also depends on the field you enter and many other factors, such as location, skills, and education level. Below is a breakdown of the factors that could affect your earnings as a research scientist. 

Experience 

The amount of experience you have can affect the salary you earn. According to Payscale, it takes over four years in a research scientist role to see much of an increase. However, working more years comes with a significant salary growth [3]:

Education

Education is a significant factor in your ability to secure a job as a research scientist, and having a higher level of education can lead to career advances. A bachelor’s degree is typically the minimum requirement, but employers often specify a master’s degree or even a PhD in a relevant field, especially if working at a university as a research scientist. View the expected salary according to Zippia for various education levels [6]:

With a PhD, you may be able to advance to a role as a principal investigator, which pays $96,685 per year, according to Glassdoor [7].

Read more: What Is a Good Salary?

Industry

The term “research scientist” is an all-encompassing title for people who conduct research in a variety of fields. Each of these areas comes with different skills, degree subjects, and pay. Below, discover several industry titles and their associated average annual salaries:

• Computer and information research scientist: $118,453 

• Medical research scientist: $100,117 

• Biomedical research scientist: $121,211 

• Biotechnology research associate: $71,438 

• Social research scientist: $95,000 

• Cybersecurity research scientist: $144,015

• Machine learning research scientist: $147,627

*All annual base salary information above is sourced from Glassdoor as of November 2024 and does not include additional pay, such as commission and benefits.

Company

Industry plays a big part in how much you earn as a research scientist, but it’s also a good idea to do some research on companies that pay well. Zippia identifies the following companies as offering top salaries [4]:

1. Lyft: $175,144

2. Flexport: $174,532

3. Meta: $171,477

4. Netflix: $168,720

5. StubHub: $167,700

6. Google: $167,427

7. DoorDash: $166,792

8. eBay: $166,231

9. Waymo: $163,156

10.  NVIDIA: $162,497

Location

Where you work can influence your salary as well. The following data, taken from Zippia, ranks the top 10 highest-paying cities in the US. Take a look at the average annual salaries for research scientists in each of these cities [5]:

1. Menlo Park, CA: $124,477

2. Indianapolis, IN: $98,052

3. Newark, NJ: $92,744

4. Oak Ridge, TN: $91,185

5. Newark, DE: $87,528

6. Seattle, WA: $81,884

7. Albany, OR: $81,025

8. Boston, MA: $80,225

9. Albany, NY: $76,678

10. Washington, DC: $76,649

Research scientist skills

Developing your skills is a great way to help you grow in your career and reach a senior-level position. A number of technical and workplace skills are essential in the role of a research scientist in general, with many more that are industry-specific. Popular in-demand skills for research scientists often include: 

Workplace:

• Communication

• Critical thinking

• Problem-solving

• Interpersonal skills

• Attention to detail

Technical:

• Research analysis

• Data analysis

• Math

• Programming languages, such as Python and C++

• Chemistry

Certain essential skills may impact the salary you can expect to receive. According to Payscale, the following top skills can increase your salary level by more than 50 percent [3]:

• Digital signal processing: 72 percent

• Engineering design: 66 percent

• Distributed systems: 56 percent

• Software architecture: 55 percent

• Java: 55 percent

• Cloud computing: 54 percent

Research scientist job outlook

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) tracks two categories of research scientist careers: computer and information research and medical research. The agency estimates that computer and information research scientist roles can grow by 26 percent between 2023 and 2033 [8]. This is much faster than the average for all jobs.

The outlook is similar for other fields, with a growth rate of 11 percent expected for medical research scientists, according to BLS data [9].

Research scientist career path 

Your degree subject choice has an influence on the type of research scientist you become, so reflect on your area of interest and align your course of study with your career choice. 

Research scientists usually start off in entry-level positions and then move into more senior roles with experience, such as a senior research scientist. 

As your career progresses, you may discover other roles to consider. Explore possible career steps for research scientists and their associated salaries:

• Research assistant: $47,981

• Staff scientist: $103,332 

• Senior research scientist: $136,786 

• Principal research scientist: $156,153 

• Research technician: $50,437 

• Research consultant: $76,144

• Research analyst: $85,100 

*All average annual base salary information is sourced from Glassdoor as of November 2024 and does not include additional pay, such as commission and benefits.

Getting started with Coursera

If you’re ready to begin your career as a research scientist, start by identifying your area of interest. This can help determine the industry you may work in and the education and experience required for the role, which may affect your salary. 

Once you’ve decided on your research field and the industry you want to work in, you can look at bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, such as this BSc Computer Science program offered by the University of London on Coursera. 

You may also consider a short course in your chosen field, such as Understanding Research Methods delivered by the University of London or Understanding Medical Research: Your Facebook Friend is Wrong offered by Yale on Coursera.