The salary statistics of physical scientists in the industry sector of professional, scientific, and technical services are shown in Table 1. In Table 2 we compare physical scientist salaries in different industries within the professional, scientific, and technical services sector.
| Percentile Bracket | Average Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th Percentile Wage | $43,660 |
| 25th Percentile Wage | $57,580 |
| 50th Percentile Wage | $80,410 |
| 75th Percentile Wage | $115,220 |
| 90th Percentile Wage | $152,910 |
Table 1 shows the average annual salary for physical scientists in the industry sector of professional, scientific, and technical services. The salaries are shown in 5 percentile scales. The average annual salary for the 90th percentile (the top 10 percent of the highest paid) physical scientists is $152,910. The median annual salary (50th percentile) is $80,410. The average annual salary for the bottom 10 percent paid physical scientists is $43,660.
The table and chart below show the trend of the median salary of physical scientists in the industry sector of professional, scientific, and technical services from 2012 to 2018.
| Year | Median Salary | Yearly Growth | 6-Year Growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $80,410 | 1.60% | 7.42% |
| 2017 | $79,120 | 1.40% | - |
| 2016 | $78,010 | 1.44% | - |
| 2015 | $76,890 | 0.57% | - |
| 2014 | $76,450 | -0.03% | - |
| 2013 | $76,470 | 2.65% | - |
| 2012 | $74,440 | - | - |
Data source: The national compensation survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in 2018 and published in April 2019 [1].