Pay by state · 52 states
Chemist Salary by State (2026)
Chemists earn the most in District of Columbia at $149,860 a year and the least in Montana at $61,890 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $91,240. All 52 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $149,860District of Columbia
- National median
- $91,240BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $61,890Montana
- States reporting
- 52of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Chemist salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of chemists OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $149,860 | $128,610 | $172,560 | 280 | $136,359 |
| 2 | MDMaryland | $140,670 | $103,840 | $171,310 | 2,480 | $134,024 |
| 3 | DEDelaware | $129,860 | $100,800 | $139,820 | 1,200 | $130,110 |
| 4 | NMNew Mexico | $126,960 | $73,070 | $178,480 | 280 | $137,683 |
| 5 | MAMassachusetts | $125,000 | $85,830 | $164,760 | 3,430 | $118,195 |
| 6 | AKAlaska | $106,010 | $76,430 | $119,820 | 60 | $103,567 |
| 7 | OROregon | $104,590 | $82,000 | $141,720 | 730 | $101,189 |
| 8 | LALouisiana | $103,890 | $77,160 | $131,950 | 740 | $117,780 |
| 9 | WYWyoming | $102,000 | $76,680 | $127,120 | 80 | $110,043 |
| 10 | COColorado | $101,980 | $77,910 | $132,560 | 1,790 | $98,960 |
| 11 | RIRhode Island | $101,660 | $85,610 | $124,750 | 150 | $99,394 |
| 12 | NHNew Hampshire | $100,050 | $74,550 | $127,160 | 300 | $96,050 |
| 13 | TXTexas | $99,640 | $73,160 | $139,010 | 5,130 | $102,661 |
| 14 | MNMinnesota | $99,280 | $76,890 | $127,480 | 1,680 | $100,668 |
| 15 | CTConnecticut | $98,140 | $78,500 | $126,730 | 1,170 | $94,721 |
| 16 | CACalifornia | $97,860 | $76,340 | $127,790 | 9,820 | $88,385 |
| 17 | ALAlabama | $97,830 | $73,500 | $126,200 | 700 | $110,140 |
| 18 | MIMichigan | $97,440 | $66,490 | $131,190 | 3,490 | $101,271 |
| 19 | WAWashington | $97,420 | $77,390 | $128,500 | 2,280 | $91,036 |
| 20 | NDNorth Dakota | $97,330 | $62,990 | $118,870 | 160 | $109,410 |
| 21 | VAVirginia | $96,650 | $65,980 | $136,660 | 1,640 | $95,595 |
| 22 | GAGeorgia | $92,750 | $66,310 | $121,830 | 1,260 | $96,321 |
| 23 | NYNew York | $90,600 | $75,830 | $122,000 | 4,230 | $83,950 |
| 24 | TNTennessee | $87,930 | $58,420 | $104,030 | 960 | $95,711 |
| 25 | VTVermont | $86,120 | $74,420 | $108,300 | 80 | $87,915 |
| 26 | IAIowa | $86,100 | $68,740 | $106,810 | 570 | $98,106 |
| 27 | WVWest Virginia | $85,560 | $73,730 | $111,360 | 180 | $95,601 |
| 28 | OHOhio | $85,270 | $69,470 | $109,760 | 4,010 | $91,912 |
| 29 | ILIllinois | $85,230 | $71,160 | $123,290 | 3,040 | $85,266 |
| 30 | NJNew Jersey | $84,450 | $75,050 | $109,470 | 5,280 | $77,616 |
| 31 | HIHawaii | $84,150 | $70,030 | $104,850 | 140 | $76,534 |
| 32 | KYKentucky | $84,090 | $64,800 | $98,190 | 530 | $93,269 |
| 33 | KSKansas | $82,820 | $60,050 | $107,510 | 690 | $91,953 |
| 34 | MOMissouri | $82,800 | $62,560 | $109,070 | 1,640 | $91,172 |
| 35 | FLFlorida | $82,740 | $60,980 | $108,640 | 1,490 | $80,009 |
| 36 | NCNorth Carolina | $82,620 | $66,760 | $106,240 | 4,530 | $87,590 |
| 37 | AZArizona | $81,730 | $62,350 | $119,390 | 870 | $81,180 |
| 38 | NVNevada | $81,170 | $60,960 | $107,350 | 280 | $81,187 |
| 39 | UTUtah | $80,770 | $63,610 | $101,570 | 910 | $81,698 |
| 40 | MSMississippi | $80,060 | $62,380 | $102,380 | 200 | $92,073 |
| 41 | SCSouth Carolina | $79,670 | $64,860 | $105,820 | 770 | $84,982 |
| 42 | INIndiana | $78,770 | $63,790 | $99,870 | 2,480 | $84,400 |
| 43 | WIWisconsin | $78,730 | $64,760 | $96,720 | 1,920 | $83,671 |
| 44 | IDIdaho | $78,000 | $58,480 | $106,750 | 320 | $81,681 |
| 45 | PAPennsylvania | $77,090 | $62,430 | $101,550 | 6,800 | $79,008 |
| 46 | PRPuerto Rico | $76,450 | $52,830 | $104,460 | 810 | N/A |
| 47 | ARArkansas | $75,570 | $57,830 | $106,330 | 380 | $86,925 |
| 48 | OKOklahoma | $74,960 | $59,640 | $105,140 | 630 | $85,334 |
| 49 | NENebraska | $74,890 | $64,850 | $98,830 | 350 | $83,116 |
| 50 | SDSouth Dakota | $67,440 | $58,940 | $83,590 | 170 | $76,129 |
| 51 | MEMaine | $64,440 | $55,740 | $77,750 | 140 | $66,399 |
| 52 | MTMontana | $61,890 | $49,400 | $80,160 | 300 | $65,392 |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Chemists, that changes the ranking: District of Columbia leads on raw pay at $149,860, while New Mexico leads once prices are taken into account at $137,683.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Chemist pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Chemists the most?
District of Columbia reports the highest median wage for Chemists at $149,860 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Maryland ($140,670) and Delaware ($129,860).
Which state pays Chemists the least?
Montana reports the lowest median for Chemists at $61,890 a year, $87,970 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Chemists earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts New Mexico first at $137,683 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $126,960. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.