Food Scientists and Technologists · SOC 19-1012

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Food Scientists and Technologistss

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for food scientists and technologists. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked. Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Top 25 of 64 metro areas

Food Scientists and Technologists: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$113,350	130	0.0
2	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$110,810	50	0.0
3	St. Louis, MO-IL	$108,200	270	0.2
4	Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	$107,970	320	0.1
5	Ann Arbor, MI	$105,420	40	0.2
6	Kansas City, MO-KS	$105,350	180	0.2
7	New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ	$104,200	730	0.1
8	Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH	$103,580	370	0.1
9	Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR	$103,300	190	0.7
10	Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	$101,760	440	0.2
11	Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN	$100,390	610	0.1
12	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$100,000	120	0.1
13	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$99,900	220	0.1
14	Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY	$99,530	110	0.2
15	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$98,930	380	0.2
16	San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX	$98,220	60	0.1
17	Merced, CA	$96,430	40	0.5
18	Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	$96,210	230	0.1
19	Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX	$95,030	60	0.0
20	Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR	$94,770	50	0.1
21	Fresno, CA	$93,750	110	0.2
22	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	$93,670	410	0.1
23	Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD	$93,330	150	0.1
24	Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA	$92,690	40	0.1
25	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$91,060	550	0.1

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Food Scientists and Technologists overview.

About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.