Animal Scientist Salary in the United States

How much does an Animal Scientist make in the United States?

As of May 01, 2026, the average salary for an Animal Scientist in the United States is $66,592 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $32.

However, an Animal Scientist's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $78,577
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $58,391 to $72,865
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $50,924
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View as table View as graph 25% $58,391 10% $50,924 90% $78,577 75% $72,865 $66,592 50%(Median) Didn’t find job title? Click

Animal Scientist Salaries by Percentile

Annual
Salary
Monthly
Pay
Weekly
Pay
Hourly
Wage
75th Percentile $72,865 $6,072 $1,401 $35
Average $66,592 $5,549 $1,281 $32
25th Percentile $58,391 $4,866 $1,123 $28
Check out Animal Scientist Job Openings in the United States
Laboratory Animal Scientist

Procter & Gamble - Mason, OH

Veterinarian

Precious Paws Animal Hospital - OCEAN CITY, MD

Licensed Veterinary Technician

VCA Adirondack Animal Hospital - QUEENSBURY, NY

Lead Licensed Veterinary Technician

VCA Adirondack Animal Hospital - QUEENSBURY, NY

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Key Factors That Influence Animal Scientist Salaries

An Animal Scientist'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 Animal Scientist Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of an Animal Scientist'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): $57,240
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $66,130
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $82,558
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $119,553
  • Expert (over 8 years): $135,566
Levels Salary
Biologist... Level Animal Scientist$57,240
Animal Sc... Level Animal Scientist$66,130
Biologist... Level Animal Scientist$82,558
Biologist... Level Animal Scientist$119,553
Biologist... Level Animal Scientist$135,566
$57,240 0 yr
$66,130 < 2 yrs
$82,558 2-4 yrs
$119,553 5-8 yrs
$135,566 > 8 yrs
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What Am I Worth?

Top Paying Cities for Animal Scientists

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: $83,992
  • San Francisco: $83,072
  • Oakland: $81,322

What Skills Can Increase an Animal Scientist's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Analysis (Mentioned in 9.53% Job Postings): Analysis is the process of considering something carefully or using statistical methods in order to understand it or explain it.
  • SOP (Mentioned in 2.46% Job Postings): SOP is A standard operating procedure is a set of step-by-step instructions compiled by an organization to help workers carry out routine operations.
  • Environmental Compliance (Mentioned in 1.81% Job Postings): Environmental Compliance means conforming to environmental laws, regulations, standards and other requirements such as site permits to operate. In recent years, environmental concerns have led to a significant increase in the number and scope of compliance imperatives across all global regulatory environments. Being closely related, environmental concerns and compliance activities are increasingly being aligned with corporate performance goals and being integrated to some extent to avoid conflicts, wasteful overlaps, and gaps. Compliance with the above requirements and obligations, requires meeting certain conditions. Typically, these include: Managing monitoring programmes or schedules, ensuring that the monitoring required in the permit has been done, at the correct locations, for the correct parameters, and at the correct frequency Pre-processing, performing calculations and validating the data for compliance with any alert or reporting levels Generating routine compliance reports for authorities.
See More Skills
Skills Demand Percentage
Analysis 9.53%
SOP 2.46%
Environmental Compliance 1.81%
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 an Animal Scientist's salary.
  • Drug Discovery: Can increase your salary by up to 24%.
  • Resourcing: Can increase your salary by up to 17%.
  • Cell Biology: Can increase your salary by up to 15%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Drug Discovery
$82,574
24%
Resourcing
$77,912
17%
Cell Biology
$76,580
15%
Immunology
$75,914
14%
Cell Culture
$73,917
11%
SOP
$73,251
10%
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How Education impacts an Animal Scientist's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Animal Scientists 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 an Animal Scientist with a Bachelor's Degree is between $64,405 and $69,282).

Animal Scientist Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Animal Scientist
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 0.5%
High School 42.9%
Associates 44.4%
Bachelors 42.9%
Masters 44.4%
Doctorate 12.1%
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Animal Scientist Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how an Animal Scientist'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 May 01, 2026

Salary Trends for Animal Scientist

Salaries for an Animal Scientist can change over time, reflecting shifts in market demand and the overall economy. The median salary decreased from $64,192 in 2023 to around $63,873 in 2025, reflecting changes in demand, location, experience, and the wider economy. For a detailed analysis of Animal Scientist salary trends, .

Average Annual Salary of Animal Scientist Over Time

2022
$???
2023
$64,192
2024
$64,078
2025
$63,873
2026
$???
2027
$???
Year Average Annual Salary
2022
View More
2023 $64,192
2024 $64,078
2025 $63,873
2026
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2027
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Most common benefits for Animal Scientist

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

Here are companies hiring for Animal Scientist 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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