Qa Lab Technician Salary in the United States

How much does a Qa Lab Technician make in the United States?

As of September 01, 2026, the average salary for a Qa Lab Technician in the United States is $72,102 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $35.

However, a Qa Lab Technician's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $82,372
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $65,262 to $77,477
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $59,034

Key Factors That Influence Qa Lab Technician Salaries

A Qa Lab Technician'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 Qa Lab Technician Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a Qa Lab Technician'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): $73,527
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $86,540
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $97,883
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $121,749
  • Expert (over 8 years): $146,069
Levels Salary
Qa Lab Te... Level Qa Lab Technician$73,527
Quality A... Level Qa Lab Technician$86,540
Quality A... Level Qa Lab Technician$97,883
Quality A... Level Qa Lab Technician$121,749
Quality A... Level Qa Lab Technician$146,069

How Do Qa Lab Technician Salaries Vary from State to State?

Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Qa Lab Technicians. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
  • District of Columbia: $79,831.
  • California: $79,528.
  • Massachusetts: $78,468.

Top Paying Cities for Qa Lab Technicians

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: $90,942
  • San Francisco: $89,946
  • Oakland: $88,051

What Skills Can Increase a Qa Lab Technician's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Analysis (Mentioned in 4.09% Job Postings): Analysis is the process of considering something carefully or using statistical methods in order to understand it or explain it.
  • Software Development (Mentioned in 2.91% Job Postings): Software development is the process of conceiving, specifying, designing, programming, documenting, testing, and bug fixing involved in creating and maintaining applications, frameworks, or other software components. Software development is a process of writing and maintaining the source code, but in a broader sense, it includes all that is involved between the conception of the desired software through to the final manifestation of the software, sometimes in a planned and structured process. Therefore, software development may include research, new development, prototyping, modification, reuse, re-engineering, maintenance, or any other activities that result in software products. Software can be developed for a variety of purposes, the three most common being to meet specific needs of a specific client/business (the case with custom software), to meet a perceived need of some set of potential users (the case with commercial and open source software), or for personal use (e.g. a scientist may write software to automate a mundane task). Embedded software development, that is, the development of embedded software, such as used for controlling consumer products, requires the development process to be integrated with the development of the controlled physical product. System software underlies applications and the programming process itself, and is often developed separately.
  • Scrum (Mentioned in 2.02% Job Postings): Using an agile process for managing the lifecycle development of software products.
Skills Demand Percentage
Analysis 4.09%
Software Development 2.91%
Scrum 2.02%

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 Qa Lab Technician's salary.

  • Scrum: Can increase your salary by up to 31%.
  • Software Testing: Can increase your salary by up to 22%.
  • Jenkins: Can increase your salary by up to 18%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Scrum $94,453
31%
Software Testing $87,964
22%
Jenkins $85,080
18%

Qa Lab Technician Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors

For Qa Lab Technician roles, the industry you choose can affect earning potential by as much as 35% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries). Data shows that the Financial Services and Pharmaceuticals sectors offer the strongest compensation, at 20% above the average. In contrast, Qa Lab Technician positions in Telecom or Retail & Wholesale typically offer lower base pay, as these industries often view Qa Lab Technician as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.

The top paying industries for a Qa Lab Technician

Industry Sector Average Annual Salary Average Hourly Rate Pay vs.Avg
Financial Services$86,522$42.020%
Pharmaceuticals$86,522$42.020%
Biotechnology$82,917$40.015%
Energy & Utilities$79,312$38.010%
Aerospace & Defense$75,707$36.05%

How Education impacts a Qa Lab Technician's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Qa Lab Technicians 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 Qa Lab Technician with a Bachelor's Degree is between $71,485 and $75,711).

Qa Lab Technician Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Qa Lab Technician
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 0.3%
High School 8.8%
Associates 8.8%
Bachelors 59.6%
Masters 21.7%
Doctorate 0.8%

Qa Lab Technician Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a Qa Lab Technician'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 September 01, 2026
$65,262
Average $72,102/year
$77,477
$5,438
Average $6,008/month
$6,456
$1,255
Average $1,387/week
$1,490
$31
Average $35/hour
$37
Annual Salary Monthly Pay Weekly Pay Hourly Wage
75th Percentile $77,477 $6,456 $1,490 $37
Average $72,102 $6,008 $1,387 $35
25th Percentile $65,262 $5,438 $1,255 $31

Most common benefits for Qa Lab Technician

  • Social Security
  • 401 (k)
  • Disability
  • Healthcare
  • Pension
  • Time Off (days)

Common company salaries for Qa Lab Technician

Here are companies hiring for Qa Lab Technician and their salaries, click below for more details.

Find Your Next Qa Lab Technician Job

Ready to take the next step in your career? Browse thousands of current Qa Lab Technician job openings on our job board. Use the search bar below to find your perfect match.

For Employees

Analyze the market and your qualifications to negotiate your salary with confidence.

Get a Salary Increase

Search thousands of open positions to find your next opportunity.

Search Job Openings

For Employers

Individualize employee pay based on unique job requirements and personal qualifications.

Adjust Employee Salary

Get the latest market price for benchmark jobs and jobs in your industry.

Price My Industry Jobs

FAQ about Qa Lab Technician

1. What industry pays the highest salary for Qa Lab Technician?

The Financial Services industry offers the highest average compensation for Qa Lab Technician roles, with salaries approximately 20% above the market median.

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.

Are you an HR manager or compensation specialist?

Salary.com's CompAnalyst platform offers:

  • Detailed skills and competency reports for specific positions
  • Job and employee pricing reports
  • Compensation data tools, salary structures, surveys and benchmarks.
Learn about CompAnalyst