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Senior Research Scientist salary: median $187,500 a year

Senior Research Scientist listings that state pay run from $103,500 to $222,000 for the middle half, based on 43 current job listings. 114 senior research scientist roles are open now.

Senior Research Scientist pay range

From 43 open listings that state pay. Annual, in US dollars.

Lower quarter
$103,500
Median
$187,500
Upper quarter
$222,000

Do AI skills change senior research scientist pay?

For Research roles in general, as of November 9, 2026. This is the function’s figure, not one for senior research scientist alone: one title rarely has enough listings on both sides.

Among Research listings, those that ask for an AI skill advertise a median $212,500, against $110,000 for those that never mention AI (+93.2%). That raw gap is not matched on level or industry.

Listings that ask for an AI skill
$212,500
median, from 150 paid listings
Listings that never mention AI
$110,000
median, from 346 paid listings

Advertised pay only: the midpoint of the range an employer posted, on live U.S. postings read from the full text. “Asks for an AI skill” means the posting names a specific AI skill; “no AI” means it never mentions AI. A difference in what is advertised is not a promise of what you would be paid, and it does not show that learning a skill causes a raise.

See the AI-skill pay table for every function · Check your own pay against these listings

More pay data: Research pay by level, skills that pay more and pay by employer size.

Open senior research scientist jobs

Verified against the employer’s own career site within the last week.

Showing the newest 15 of about 114 verified open jobs here. Search all jobs

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Senior Research Scientist salary questions

How much does a senior research scientist make?
Among 43 open senior research scientist listings that state pay, the median is $187,500 a year, and half of listings fall between $103,500 and $222,000.
Where does this senior research scientist pay data come from?
From current job listings on employers’ own career sites that state a pay range. Hourly pay is converted at 2,080 hours a year, and a listing’s midpoint is used. Listed pay is what employers advertise, not what people are paid.
Which state pays senior research scientists the most?
Of the states with enough listings, California has the highest median listed pay at $248,500.

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