Post Doc Salary in the United States

How much does a Post Doc make in the United States?

As of April 01, 2026, the average salary for a Post Doc in the United States is $63,910 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $31.

However, a Post Doc's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $76,818
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $56,352 to $70,667
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $49,470
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View as table View as graph 25% $56,352 10% $49,470 90% $76,818 75% $70,667 $63,910 50%(Median) Didn’t find job title? Click

Post Doc Salaries by Percentile

Annual
Salary
Monthly
Pay
Weekly
Pay
Hourly
Wage
75th Percentile $70,667 $5,889 $1,359 $34
Average $63,910 $5,326 $1,229 $31
25th Percentile $56,352 $4,696 $1,084 $27
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Key Factors That Influence Post Doc Salaries

A Post Doc's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects Post Doc Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a Post Doc's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:

  • Entry-Level (less than 1 year): $63,175
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $63,385
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $66,014
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $68,974
  • Expert (over 8 years): $69,186
Levels Salary
Entry Level Post Doc$63,175
Intermediate Level Post Doc$63,385
Senior Level Post Doc$66,014
Specialist Level Post Doc$68,974
Expert Level Post Doc$69,186
$63,175 0 yr
$63,385 < 2 yrs
$66,014 2-4 yrs
$68,974 5-8 yrs
$69,186 > 8 yrs
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What Am I Worth?

Top Paying Cities for Post Docs

Salaries can also vary between different cities. Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay. Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:

  • San Jose: $80,610
  • San Francisco: $79,817
  • Oakland: $78,047

What Skills Can Increase a Post Doc's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Planning (Mentioned in 6.39% Job Postings): An act or process of making or carrying out plans. Establishment of goals, policies, and procedures for a social or economic unit city planning business planning.
  • Long Term Care (Mentioned in 2.58% Job Postings): Long-term care (LTC) is a variety of services which help meet both the medical and non-medical needs of people with a chronic illness or disability who cannot care for themselves for long periods. Long term care is focused on individualized and coordinated services that promote independence, maximize patients' quality of life, and meet patients' needs over a period of time. It is common for long-term care to provide custodial and non-skilled care, such as assisting with normal daily tasks like dressing, feeding, using the bathroom. Increasingly, long-term care involves providing a level of medical care that requires the expertise of skilled practitioners to address the multiple chronic conditions associated with older populations. Long-term care can be provided at home, in the community, in assisted living facilities or in nursing homes. Long-term care may be needed by people of any age, although it is a more common need for senior citizens.
  • Acute Care (Mentioned in 1.34% Job Postings): Acute care is a branch of secondary health care where a patient receives active but short-term treatment for a severe injury or episode of illness, an urgent medical condition, or during recovery from surgery. In medical terms, care for acute health conditions is the opposite from chronic care, or longer term care. Acute care services are generally delivered by teams of health care professionals from a range of medical and surgical specialties. Acute care may require a stay in a hospital emergency department, ambulatory surgery center, urgent care centre or other short-term stay facility, along with the assistance of diagnostic services, surgery, or follow-up outpatient care in the community. Hospital-based acute inpatient care typically has the goal of discharging patients as soon as they are deemed healthy and stable. Acute care settings include emergency department, intensive care, coronary care, cardiology, neonatal intensive care, and many general areas where the patient could become acutely unwell and require stabilization and transfer to another higher dependency unit for further treatment.
See More Skills
Skills Demand Percentage
Planning 6.39%
Long Term Care 2.58%
Acute Care 1.34%
What skills can make your compensation higher?
Mastering certain specialized skills can lead to a significant increase in pay. Here are examples of skills and the potential impact they can have on a Post Doc's salary.
  • Presentation: Can increase your salary by up to 8%.
  • Initiative: Can increase your salary by up to 6%.
  • Confidentiality: Can increase your salary by up to 6%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Presentation
$69,023
8%
Initiative
$67,745
6%
Confidentiality
$67,745
6%
Flexibility
$67,106
5%
Time Management
$66,467
4%
Leadership
$66,467
4%
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How Education impacts a Post Doc's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Post Docs enter the field with a Bachelor's Degree degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.

According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for a Post Doc with a Bachelor's Degree is between $59,228 and $63,495).

Post Doc Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Post Doc
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 1.4%
High School 1.4%
Associates 2.7%
Bachelors 79.7%
Masters 16.2%
Doctorate 0.0%
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Post Doc Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a Post Doc's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting. Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role. Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.

Last Updated on April 01, 2026

Salary Trends for Post Doc

Salaries for a Post Doc can change over time, reflecting shifts in market demand and the overall economy. The median salary decreased from $86,791 in 2023 to around $85,578 in 2025, reflecting changes in demand, location, experience, and the wider economy. For a detailed analysis of Post Doc salary trends, .

Average Annual Salary of Post Doc Over Time

2022
$???
2023
$86,791
2024
$86,950
2025
$85,578
2026
$???
2027
$???
Year Average Annual Salary
2022
View More
2023 $86,791
2024 $86,950
2025 $85,578
2026
View More
2027
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Most common benefits for Post Doc

Social Security
401(k)
Disability
Healthcare
Pension
Time Off (days)
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Common company salaries for Post Doc

Here are companies hiring for Post Doc and their salaries, click below for more details.

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Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.

We offer detailed salary information across multiple percentiles for your reference. (Click here to learn Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial for Achieving Pay Equity.)

With the most extensive online, real-time compensation data available, Salary.com helps you pinpoint your exact pay target.

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