2021 Annual Salary, Salary Range, and Highest Paying States and Industries
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Chemists
Chemists conduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or knowledge.
Table of contents
- Average salary
- Starting salary
- Salary rank
- Salary range
- Highest paying states
- Highest paying industries
Average salary
Starting salary
Entry-level Chemists with little to no experience can expect to make anywhere between $44,970 to $58,070 per year or $22 to $28 per hour. Similar to any other job, their salary will increase as they gain experience.
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Salary rank
We wanted to make it easy for our readers to compare the salary of Chemists to all the other careers out there. So we created Salary Rank. We compared the salary of all careers then we gave them a rank of A, B, C, or D depending on where their average salary sit in comparison to other careers.
Salary range
| Level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Highest (Top 10%) | $67 | $139,650 |
| Senior (Top 25%) | $52 | $108,390 |
| Middle (Mid 50%) | $38 | $79,300 |
| Junior (Bottom 25%) | $28 | $58,070 |
| No experience (Bottom 10%) | $22 | $44,970 |
Highest paying states
| State | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| DC | $62 | $129,900 |
| MD | $58 | $119,730 |
| DE | $53 | $110,460 |
| VA | $50 | $103,290 |
| RI | $50 | $103,050 |
| MA | $48 | $100,480 |
| NJ | $48 | $99,190 |
| TN | $46 | $96,630 |
| LA | $45 | $92,720 |
| CT | $45 | $92,640 |
Another simple way to increase your salary as a Chemist is to move to a higher paying state. However moving to a higher paying state like DC doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the expenses at DC might be much higher than where you are currently living at right now.
According to BLS, the highest paid Chemists are in the states of DC, MD, DE, VA and RI.
Highest paying industries
| Salary by industry | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Federal Executive Branch | $120510 | $57.94 |
| Farm Product Raw Material Merchant Wholesalers | $110710 | $53.22 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods | $103810 | $49.91 |
| Support Activities for Mining | $103010 | $49.53 |
| Wholesale Electronic Markets and Agents and Brokers | $101490 | $48.79 |
| Oil and Gas Extraction | $100920 | $48.52 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | $100220 | $48.19 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $99720 | $47.94 |
| Other Pipeline Transportation | $98520 | $47.36 |
| Machinery, Equipment, and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers | $98050 | $47.14 |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution | $96020 | $46.17 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | $93810 | $45.10 |
| Tobacco Manufacturing | $93160 | $44.79 |
| Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing | $92330 | $44.39 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | $91740 | $44.10 |
| Chemical Manufacturing | $91480 | $43.98 |
| Plastics Product Manufacturing | $91360 | $43.92 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods | $90610 | $43.56 |
| Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing | $90150 | $43.34 |
| Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations | $89890 | $43.22 |
| Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing | $89410 | $42.99 |
| Water, Sewage and Other Systems | $88740 | $42.66 |
| Motor Vehicle Manufacturing | $88540 | $42.57 |
| Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services | $88290 | $42.45 |
| Nonferrous Metal Production and Processing | $86380 | $41.53 |
| Other Food Manufacturing | $86110 | $41.40 |
| Iron and Steel Mills and Ferroalloy Manufacturing | $86090 | $41.39 |
| Machinery Manufacturing | $85870 | $41.28 |
| Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing | $85490 | $41.10 |
| Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing | $84640 | $40.69 |
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