Food Scientists and Technologists Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 19-1012 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$88,712
$42.65/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Food Scientists and Technologists is $88,712 per year ($42.65/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $68,806 and $116,646 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $145,288 per year. There are approximately 13,060 food scientists and technologists employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Use chemistry, microbiology, engineering, and other sciences to study the principles underlying the processing and deterioration of foods; analyze food content to determine levels of vitamins, fat, sugar, and protein; discover new food sources; research ways to make processed foods safe, palatable, and healthful; and apply food science knowledge to determine best ways to process, package, preserve, store, and distribute food.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+6.5%
Faster than average
Annual openings
1K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
15K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
8% from new growth92% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Other Food Manufacturing
NAICS 311900
2K
$95,570
Management of Companies and Enterprises
NAICS 551100
2K
$106,040
Scientific Research and Development Services
NAICS 541700
1K
$108,360
Dairy Product Manufacturing
NAICS 311500
980
$77,140
Animal Slaughtering and Processing
NAICS 311600
870
$74,010
Wage range across top 5 industries: $74,010 to $108,360 (46% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$25.44
$52,915
P25
$33.08
$68,806
P50MEDIAN
$42.65
$88,712
P75
$56.08
$116,646
P90
$69.85
$145,288
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Cooling
Openings Rate
4.2%
Quits Rate
2.0%
Professional & Business Services openings tumbled 318K in March -- the largest single-sector drop in this release. Openings rate fell from 5.5% to 4.2%. Layoffs jumped to 527K (+99K). White-collar demand has cooled abruptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average food scientists and technologists salary?
The national median salary for Food Scientists and Technologists is $88,712 per year ($42.65/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $68,806 and $116,646 annually.
How much do top-earning food scientists and technologists make?
The 90th percentile salary for Food Scientists and Technologists is $145,288 per year ($69.85/hr). The 75th percentile is $116,646 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for food scientists and technologists?
Entry-level Food Scientists and Technologists (10th percentile) earn approximately $52,915 per year ($25.44/hr). The 25th percentile is $68,806 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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