Research Scientist
Median salary
$131,811
Half earn more, half less
Middle 50%
$80,000 – $196,000
P25 to P75
Change vs prior year
+2.39%
-0.72% after inflation
Share of all H-1B
0.5%
2,496 filings
Research Scientist pay range
Annual base pay in certified H-1B filings for this title, all occupations combined.
P10$69,918
P25$80,000
Median$131,811
P75$196,000
P90$226,466
Median by H-1B wage level
Level I$75,904549 LCAs
Level II$144,868882 LCAs
Level III$168,200455 LCAs
Level IV$214,032305 LCAs
Level I is entry level, Level IV fully experienced (Department of Labor prevailing-wage levels).
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Research Scientist pay by occupation code
Employers file the same title under different SOC occupation codes, and pay differs between them. Each row is computed only within its SOC.
Computer and Information Research Scientists 44%Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists 16%Biological Scientists, All Other 7%Biochemists and Biophysicists 6%Chemists 3%Physicists 3%
| Occupation (SOC) | Share | LCAs | P25 | Median | P75 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Computer and Information Research Scientists 15-1221 | 43.59% | 1,088 | $178,360 | $196,000 | $222,950 |
| Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists 19-1042 | 15.62% | 390 | $69,835 | $76,500 | $88,000 |
| Biological Scientists, All Other 19-1029 | 7.33% | 183 | $71,297 | $80,000 | $93,100 |
| Biochemists and Biophysicists 19-1021 | 6.29% | 157 | $71,463 | $78,000 | $82,678 |
| Chemists 19-2031 | 3.17% | 79 | $76,553 | $87,110 | $108,717 |
| Physicists 19-2012 | 2.76% | 69 | $80,974 | $106,920 | $186,059 |
| Data Scientists 15-2051 | 2.16% | 54 | $125,229 | $192,104 | $222,749 |
| Materials Scientists 19-2032 | 2.16% | 54 | $84,465 | $102,148 | $115,000 |
| Microbiologists 19-1022 | 1.48% | 37 | $65,000 | $74,200 | $86,275 |
| Software Developers 15-1252 | 1.08% | 27 | $174,918 | $193,000 | $214,694 |
| Engineers, All Other 17-2199 | 0.96% | 24 | $124,410 | $180,000 | $190,000 |
| Bioengineers and Biomedical Engineers 17-2031 | 0.92% | 23 | $70,516 | $93,558 | $110,122 |
| Soil and Plant Scientists 19-1013 | 0.88% | 22 | $61,240 | $71,734 | $85,922 |
| Statisticians 15-2041 | 0.88% | 22 | $95,000 | $123,600 | $171,052 |
| Mathematicians 15-2021 | 0.8% | 20 | $168,000 | $245,588 | $258,524 |
| Atmospheric and Space Scientists 19-2021 | 0.68% | 17 | $80,000 | $104,722 | $115,000 |
| Epidemiologists 19-1041 | 0.6% | 15 | $81,696 | $87,351 | $138,923 |
| Mechanical Engineers 17-2141 | 0.56% | 14 | $97,714 | $121,697 | $138,696 |
| Electrical Engineers, R&D 17-2074 | 0.44% | 11 | $84,000 | $97,000 | $102,616 |
| Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health 19-2041 | 0.44% | 11 | $67,500 | $82,500 | $103,036 |
| Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers 19-2042 | 0.44% | 11 | $83,975 | $100,000 | $110,643 |
| Electrical Engineers 17-2071 | 0.44% | 11 | $104,150 | $135,000 | $158,820 |
| Materials Engineers 17-2131 | 0.4% | 10 | $80,000 | $92,640 | $162,120 |
| Mechanical Engineers, R&D 17-2144 | 0.4% | 10 | $81,025 | $86,380 | $93,980 |
| Operations Research Analysts 15-2031 | 0.4% | 10 | $97,500 | $129,865 | $146,775 |
| Hydrologists 19-2043 | 0.36% | 9 | $75,000 | $80,000 | $85,890 |
| Astronomers 19-2011 | 0.32% | 8 | $84,666 | $86,500 | $90,075 |
| Chemical Engineers 17-2041 | 0.32% | 8 | $93,750 | $106,932 | $122,308 |
| Economists 19-3011 | 0.28% | 7 | $111,021 | $120,000 | $121,800 |
| Sociologists 19-3041 | 0.24% | 6 | $80,000 | $81,850 | $100,500 |
| Food Scientists and Technologists 19-1012 | 0.24% | 6 | $74,730 | $94,007 | $99,414 |
| Industrial Engineers 17-2112 | 0.2% | 5 | $94,000 | $100,506 | $108,877 |
| Physical Scientists, All Other 19-2099 | 0.2% | 5 | $90,000 | $112,500 | $120,000 |
Occupations with fewer than 5 filings for this title are not shown.
Top H-1B sponsors for Research Scientist
What the biggest sponsors pay for this title, compared with the median of all sponsors filing the same title in the same occupation.
| Employer | LCAs | Median | vs all sponsors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meta | 505 | $187,974 | -4.1% |
| 153 | $205,000 | +4.6% | |
| Nvidia | 92 | $184,000 | -6.1% |
| Amazon | 69 | $160,887 | -17.9% |
| Bytedance | 34 | $320,000 | +63.3% |
| Intel | 29 | $153,540 | -21.7% |
| Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center | 26 | $85,000 | +11.1% |
| Massachusetts Institute Of Technology | 24 | $78,425 | +0.5% |
| The University Of Virginia | 24 | $67,800 | -11.4% |
| The University Of Texas M D Anderson Cancer Center | 22 | $78,594 | +2.7% |
| Lawrence Livermore National Security | 16 | $194,088 | +81.5% |
| Cleveland Clinic Foundation | 15 | $73,831 | -3.5% |
| Meta | 15 | $203,350 | +5.4% |
| Ut Southwestern Medical Center | 14 | $71,750 | -10.3% |
| Meta | 14 | $258,524 | +5.3% |
Exact titles grouped here
The most common versions of this title as employers wrote them (after removing job codes and typos), with their own medians.
- Senior Research Scientist196 LCAs · median $110,970
- Research Scientist II156 LCAs · median $110,805
- Research Scientist I86 LCAs · median $80,000
- Research Scientist III51 LCAs · median $123,299
- Research Scientist (Computer Scientist)10 LCAs · median $209,933
- Research Scientist Senior9 LCAs · median $84,050
- Research Scientist, Systems ML - SW/HW Co-Design7 LCAs · median $182,000
- Senior Research Scientist I7 LCAs · median $116,390