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Role hub · Biologists

Biologist: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Oct 24, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of biologists earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$98,920
Hourly
$47.56
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Biologists research or study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and functions. The median pay is $98,920 a year ($47.56 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is a master's degree (55% of workers surveyed by O*NET).

Median pay
$98,920
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
55,850
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 5 of 5
extensive preparation
Most common education
Master's Degree
55% of workers
Explore the role

Every page for Biologists

SalaryBiologist salary

Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.

Open →How to becomeBiologist how to become

Education, training and the skills to build first.

Open →Career changeBiologist career change

Where these skills transfer, with skill match and pay change.

Open →Free toolCheck your resume

Parsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.

Open →
The work

What biologists do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Program and use computers to store, process, and analyze data.
  2. Prepare technical and research reports, such as environmental impact reports, and communicate the results to individuals in industry, government, or the general public.
  3. Supervise biological technicians and technologists and other scientists.
  4. Identify, classify, and study structure, behavior, ecology, physiology, nutrition, culture, and distribution of plant and animal species.
  5. Study basic principles of plant and animal life, such as origin, relationship, development, anatomy, and function.
  6. Collect and analyze biological data about relationships among and between organisms and their environment.
  7. Review reports and proposals, such as those relating to land use classifications and recreational development, for accuracy, adequacy, or adherence to policies, regulations, or scientific standards.
  8. Write grant proposals to obtain funding for biological research.
Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

SciencecoreReading ComprehensioncoreWritingcoreActive ListeningSpeakingCritical ThinkingMathematicsActive LearningComplex Problem Solving

Knowledge areas: Biology, Education and Training, English Language, Mathematics, Administration and Management, Chemistry.

Tools and technology

Software biologists use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Adobe PhotoshopGraphics or photo imaging softwareHot technology
  • ESRI ArcGIS softwareGeographic information systemHot technology
  • IBM SPSS StatisticsAnalytical or scientific softwareHot technology
  • The MathWorks MATLABAnalytical or scientific softwareHot technology
  • Agilent Technologies GeneSpring GXAnalytical or scientific software
  • BLATAnalytical or scientific software
  • Basic Local Alignment Search Tool BLASTAnalytical or scientific software
  • BioKin PlateKiAnalytical or scientific software
  • Blue Tractor Software DNADynamoAnalytical or scientific software
  • CUBICAnalytical or scientific software
  • Deoxyribonucleic acid DNA sequence analysis softwareAnalytical or scientific software
  • EMBOSSAnalytical or scientific software

Also called: Marine Biologist, Aquatic Biologist, Biological Scientist, Botanist, Fisheries and Wildlife Biologist, Fisheries Biologist.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the correlation between the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level, subtract the average across all occupations, and correlate the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 or below means unrelated. Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).