Skip to content
TryHired.
Role hub · Chemists

Chemist: 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 chemists earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$91,240
Hourly
$43.87
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Chemists conduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or knowledge. The median pay is $91,240 a year ($43.87 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is a bachelor's degree (56% of workers surveyed by O*NET).

Median pay
$91,240
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
82,770
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 4 of 5
considerable preparation
Most common education
Bachelor's Degree
56% of workers
Explore the role

Every page for Chemists

SalaryChemist salary

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

Open →Career changeChemist 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 chemists do day to day

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

  1. Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods.
  2. Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis.
  3. Conduct quality control tests.
  4. Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests.
  5. Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed.
  6. Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests.
  7. Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions.
  8. Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests.
Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

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

SciencecoreReading ComprehensioncoreCritical ThinkingcoreSpeakingActive ListeningWritingMathematicsComplex Problem SolvingActive Learning

Knowledge areas: Chemistry, English Language, Mathematics, Production and Processing, Administration and Management, Computers and Electronics.

Tools and technology

Software chemists use

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

  • Extensible markup language XMLEnterprise application integration softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft VisioProcess mapping and design softwareHot technology
  • Accelrys Cerius2Analytical or scientific software
  • Accelrys DeCipherAnalytical or scientific software
  • Advanced Chemistry Development ACD/1D nuclear magnetic resonance NMR processorAnalytical or scientific software
  • Agilent ChemStationAnalytical or scientific software
  • Bruker BioSpin TopSpinAnalytical or scientific software
  • Chem2PacAnalytical or scientific software
  • ChemInnovation Software Chem 4-DComputer aided design CAD software
  • ChemSW Calibration ProAnalytical or scientific software
  • ChemSW Chemical Inventory System CISInventory management software
  • ChemSW Mass Spec ToolsAnalytical or scientific software

Also called: Air Quality Chemist, Analytical Chemist, Chemical Lab Scientist (Chemical Laboratory Scientist), Forensic Chemist, Product Development Chemist.

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).