How much does a Data Scientists make?

The median annual wage for Data Scientists is $120,230 ($58 per hour). Pay ranges from about $67,240 at the 10th percentile to $199,130 at the 90th percentile.

What is the average salary for a Data Scientists?

The average (mean) annual salary is $126,800, which is higher than the median because a small number of high earners pull the average up.

Which state pays Data Scientistss the most?

Washington has the highest median annual wage for this occupation at $163,350.

Is Data Scientists a growing occupation?

BLS employment data for May 2025 counts about 262K people in this occupation. Projected growth is published separately in the BLS Employment Projections program.

What does a Data Scientists do?

Generate standard or custom reports summarizing business, financial, or economic data for review by executives, managers, clients, and other stakeholders.; Maintain or update business intelligence tools, databases, dashboards, systems, or methods.; Manage timely flow of business intelligence information to users..

Data Scientists Salary

Computer and Mathematical Occupations · 262K employed in the U.S.

Median annual

$120,230

Median hourly

$58

Average annual

$126,800

Typical range

$67,240–$199,130

Pay distribution

10th to 90th percentile, with the median marked.

10th$67,240

25th$85,660

Median$120,230

75th$158,880

90th$199,130

What this role pays

The median annual salary for Data Scientists is $120,230 as of May 2025, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey. That works out to about $58 an hour at a full-time schedule.

Develop and implement a set of techniques or analytics applications to transform raw data into meaningful information using data-oriented programming languages and visualization software. Apply data mining, data modeling, natural language processing, and machine learning to extract and analyze information from large structured and unstructured datasets.

Most earn between $67,240 and $199,130 a year. There are roughly 262K people employed as data scientists in the United States. Use the state and metro pages below to see how pay changes by location, and the calculator to convert any hourly or annual figure.

Salary calculator

Convert your pay and see where it lands for Data Scientists.

Pay amountPay period

Hours / weekWeeks / year

Hourly: $57.80
Daily: $462
Weekly: $2,312
Bi-weekly: $4,624
Monthly: $10,019
Annual: $120,230

$120,230 a year is around the 50th percentile for Data Scientistss. The median is $120,230.

Data Scientists — U.S., May 2025
Percentile	Hourly	Annual
10th percentile	$32.30	$67,240
25th percentile	$41.20	$85,660
Median	$57.80	$120,230
75th percentile	$76.40	$158,880
90th percentile	$95.70	$199,130
Average (mean)	$61.00	$126,800
Employment	262,440 people

Key skills

Reading Comprehension
Critical Thinking
Active Listening
Speaking
Active Learning
Writing
Judgment and Decision Making
Monitoring
Mathematics
Complex Problem Solving

Highest-paying states

Median annual wage by state.

1Washington$163,350
2California$141,590
3Maryland$136,370
4New Jersey$135,280
5Massachusetts$131,750
6New York$130,460
7Minnesota$128,800
8Vermont$127,070
9District of Columbia$126,490
10Virginia$126,430
11Connecticut$126,340
12Oregon$125,990

Top-paying metro areas

Median annual wage by metro area.

1San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA$185,080
2San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA$170,110
3Idaho Falls, ID$167,840
4Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA$164,740
5Kennewick-Richland, WA$156,830
6Charlottesville, VA$149,800
7North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL$146,980
8Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT$141,760
9Corvallis, OR$140,190
10New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ$135,980
11Trenton-Princeton, NJ$135,320
12Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD$134,320

Related job titles

Employers advertise Data Scientists roles under these titles.

Related occupations

What a Data Scientists does

Generate standard or custom reports summarizing business, financial, or economic data for review by executives, managers, clients, and other stakeholders.
Maintain or update business intelligence tools, databases, dashboards, systems, or methods.
Manage timely flow of business intelligence information to users.
Identify and analyze industry or geographic trends with business strategy implications.
Document specifications for business intelligence or information technology reports, dashboards, or other outputs.
Collect business intelligence data from available industry reports, public information, field reports, or purchased sources.
Conduct or coordinate tests to ensure that intelligence is consistent with defined needs.
Synthesize current business intelligence or trend data to support recommendations for action.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Data Scientists make?: The median annual wage for Data Scientists is $120,230 ($58 per hour). Pay ranges from about $67,240 at the 10th percentile to $199,130 at the 90th percentile.
What is the average salary for a Data Scientists?: The average (mean) annual salary is $126,800, which is higher than the median because a small number of high earners pull the average up.
Which state pays Data Scientistss the most?: Washington has the highest median annual wage for this occupation at $163,350.
Is Data Scientists a growing occupation?: BLS employment data for May 2025 counts about 262K people in this occupation. Projected growth is published separately in the BLS Employment Projections program.
What does a Data Scientists do?: Generate standard or custom reports summarizing business, financial, or economic data for review by executives, managers, clients, and other stakeholders.; Maintain or update business intelligence tools, databases, dashboards, systems, or methods.; Manage timely flow of business intelligence information to users..