Highest-paying science jobs in Boston

Written by:
February 9, 2023
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Highest-paying science jobs in Boston

Stacker compiled a list of the highest-paying science jobs in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH metro area using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Jobs are ranked by 2021 annual mean wage. Jobs the BLS lists as "life, physical, and social science occupations" were included.

#30. Biological technicians

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $62,270
- #9 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 4,770

National
- Annual mean salary: $51,770
- Employment: 76,150
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX ($69,050)
--- Boulder, CO ($68,640)
--- Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA ($65,940)

#29. Geological technicians, except hydrologic technicians

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $66,420
- #12 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available

National
- Annual mean salary: $59,080
- Employment: 9,210
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Tulsa, OK ($89,210)
--- Anchorage, AK ($88,050)
--- Baton Rouge, LA ($86,860)

#28. Forest and conservation technicians

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $66,570
- #2 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 30

National
- Annual mean salary: $43,420
- Employment: 30,440
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ($68,370)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($66,570)
--- Corvallis, OR ($62,260)

#27. Social science research assistants

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $67,590
- #5 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,260

National
- Annual mean salary: $56,430
- Employment: 28,690
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ($88,730)
--- Columbia, SC ($77,760)
--- Springfield, MA-CT ($70,570)

#26. Survey researchers

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $71,050
- #9 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 330

National
- Annual mean salary: $64,690
- Employment: 8,850
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($90,860)
--- Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ ($88,580)
--- Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY ($86,230)

#25. Foresters

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $73,290
- #28 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90

National
- Annual mean salary: $67,710
- Employment: 9,500
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($96,820)
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($96,220)
--- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ($90,320)

#24. Occupational health and safety technicians

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $76,420
- #6 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 240

National
- Annual mean salary: $57,560
- Employment: 21,750
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Evansville, IN-KY ($77,880)
--- Anchorage, AK ($77,690)
--- Oklahoma City, OK ($77,100)

#23. Soil and plant scientists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $78,530
- #29 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available

National
- Annual mean salary: $76,290
- Employment: 15,610
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Durham-Chapel Hill, NC ($111,450)
--- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX ($109,490)
--- Raleigh, NC ($109,320)

#22. Zoologists and wildlife biologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $81,240
- #19 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available

National
- Annual mean salary: $70,300
- Employment: 15,930
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Barnstable Town, MA ($109,570)
--- Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, MS ($106,800)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($100,350)

#21. Food scientists and technologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $84,020
- #37 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 160

National
- Annual mean salary: $84,150
- Employment: 13,510
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Kansas City, MO-KS ($138,600)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($103,970)
--- Wichita, KS ($102,100)

#20. Conservation scientists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $84,430
- #14 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 200

National
- Annual mean salary: $68,230
- Employment: 22,550
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Springfield, MA-CT ($108,670)
--- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI ($106,200)
--- Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV ($101,900)

#19. Urban and regional planners

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $84,510
- #52 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 920

National
- Annual mean salary: $81,310
- Employment: 38,940
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Boulder, CO ($119,680)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($112,760)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($112,740)

#18. Political scientists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $87,640
- #6 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available

National
- Annual mean salary: $120,430
- Employment: 5,650
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD ($151,830)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($129,130)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($121,250)

#17. Forensic science technicians

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $90,710
- #5 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 80

National
- Annual mean salary: $66,850
- Employment: 17,020
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($106,600)
--- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA ($96,980)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($96,410)

#16. Occupational health and safety specialists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $93,270
- #10 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,600

National
- Annual mean salary: $78,740
- Employment: 106,340
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Kennewick-Richland, WA ($111,950)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($108,240)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($108,020)

#15. School psychologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $94,800
- #32 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,350

National
- Annual mean salary: $82,770
- Employment: 57,110
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Boulder, CO ($116,280)
--- El Centro, CA ($116,010)
--- Fresno, CA ($115,360)

#14. Clinical and counseling psychologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $95,390
- #104 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 2,070

National
- Annual mean salary: $99,640
- Employment: 58,100
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Diego-Carlsbad, CA ($136,630)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($134,200)
--- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA ($133,060)

#13. Environmental scientists and specialists, including health

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $98,430
- #7 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 1,400

National
- Annual mean salary: $81,240
- Employment: 76,890
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Idaho Falls, ID ($116,630)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($109,190)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($107,710)

#12. Hydrologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $100,210
- #16 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: data not available

National
- Annual mean salary: $94,780
- Employment: 6,390
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA ($148,150)
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($136,920)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($125,470)

#11. Epidemiologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $100,260
- #10 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 330

National
- Annual mean salary: $86,740
- Employment: 8,180
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ($145,410)
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($139,240)
--- Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY ($124,460)

#10. Geoscientists, except hydrologists and geographers

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $103,020
- #27 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 370

National
- Annual mean salary: $103,550
- Employment: 23,620
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX ($161,290)
--- Corpus Christi, TX ($156,870)
--- Midland, TX ($156,270)

#9. Sociologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $107,330
- #4 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 90

National
- Annual mean salary: $96,260
- Employment: 2,640
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC ($129,870)
--- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI ($117,170)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($109,760)

#8. Chemists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $108,330
- #4 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 4,160

National
- Annual mean salary: $89,130
- Employment: 80,600
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($131,290)
--- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT ($115,790)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($108,330)

#7. Medical scientists, except epidemiologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $113,730
- #27 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 11,800

National
- Annual mean salary: $104,050
- Employment: 108,550
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Memphis, TN-MS-AR ($176,770)
--- Columbia, SC ($155,570)
--- Danbury, CT ($151,970)

#6. Atmospheric and space scientists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $118,420
- #2 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 40

National
- Annual mean salary: $96,880
- Employment: 8,520
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($118,860)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($118,420)
--- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA ($114,860)

#5. Microbiologists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $121,530
- #3 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 2,480

National
- Annual mean salary: $87,820
- Employment: 19,430
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Knoxville, TN ($125,380)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($121,530)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($115,340)

#4. Economists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $122,480
- #7 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 550

National
- Annual mean salary: $120,830
- Employment: 15,640
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA ($162,870)
--- San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA ($161,320)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($156,360)

#3. Materials scientists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $133,380
- #4 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 230

National
- Annual mean salary: $104,790
- Employment: 6,690
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD ($142,410)
--- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($135,480)
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($133,380)

#2. Biochemists and biophysicists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $135,070
- #1 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 7,640

National
- Annual mean salary: $113,460
- Employment: 35,050
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH ($135,070)
--- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA ($133,520)
--- Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO ($133,390)

#1. Physicists

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH
- Annual mean salary: $145,160
- #18 highest pay among all metros
- Employment: 280

National
- Annual mean salary: $151,580
- Employment: 20,020
- Metros with highest average pay:
--- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD ($199,830)
--- Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ ($195,300)
--- Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX ($188,250)

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