Chemists
Also called: Analytical Chemist, Chemist, Research Chemist, ScientistConduct qualitative and quantitative chemical analyses or experiments in laboratories for quality or process control or to develop new products or knowledge.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 6 of its 12 tasks, yet jobs are projected to grow 6.4% by 2035. In the most exposed occupations, the squeeze shows up first among early-career workers. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 1.8% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Chemists and materials scientists”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 8.4 hires for every 10 job openings in nondurable goods manufacturing, which employs about 37% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.8.4 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $97,830 | $73,500 to $126,200 | 700 |
| Alaska | $106,010 | $76,430 to $119,820 | 60 |
| Arizona | $81,730 | $62,350 to $119,390 | 870 |
| Arkansas | $75,570 | $57,830 to $106,330 | 380 |
| California | $97,860 | $76,340 to $127,790 | 9,820 |
| Colorado | $101,980 | $77,910 to $132,560 | 1,790 |
| Connecticut | $98,140 | $78,500 to $126,730 | 1,170 |
| Delaware | $129,860 | $100,800 to $139,820 | 1,200 |
| District of Columbia | $149,860 | $128,610 to $172,560 | 280 |
| Florida | $82,740 | $60,980 to $108,640 | 1,490 |
| Georgia | $92,750 | $66,310 to $121,830 | 1,260 |
| Hawaii | $84,150 | $70,030 to $104,850 | 140 |
| Idaho | $78,000 | $58,480 to $106,750 | 320 |
| Illinois | $85,230 | $71,160 to $123,290 | 3,040 |
| Indiana | $78,770 | $63,790 to $99,870 | 2,480 |
| Iowa | $86,100 | $68,740 to $106,810 | 570 |
| Kansas | $82,820 | $60,050 to $107,510 | 690 |
| Kentucky | $84,090 | $64,800 to $98,190 | 530 |
| Louisiana | $103,890 | $77,160 to $131,950 | 740 |
| Maine | $64,440 | $55,740 to $77,750 | 140 |
| Maryland | $140,670 | $103,840 to $171,310 | 2,480 |
| Massachusetts | $125,000 | $85,830 to $164,760 | 3,430 |
| Michigan | $97,440 | $66,490 to $131,190 | 3,490 |
| Minnesota | $99,280 | $76,890 to $127,480 | 1,680 |
| Mississippi | $80,060 | $62,380 to $102,380 | 200 |
| Missouri | $82,800 | $62,560 to $109,070 | 1,640 |
| Montana | $61,890 | $49,400 to $80,160 | 300 |
| Nebraska | $74,890 | $64,850 to $98,830 | 350 |
| Nevada | $81,170 | $60,960 to $107,350 | 280 |
| New Hampshire | $100,050 | $74,550 to $127,160 | 300 |
| New Jersey | $84,450 | $75,050 to $109,470 | 5,280 |
| New Mexico | $126,960 | $73,070 to $178,480 | 280 |
| New York | $90,600 | $75,830 to $122,000 | 4,230 |
| North Carolina | $82,620 | $66,760 to $106,240 | 4,530 |
| North Dakota | $97,330 | $62,990 to $118,870 | 160 |
| Ohio | $85,270 | $69,470 to $109,760 | 4,010 |
| Oklahoma | $74,960 | $59,640 to $105,140 | 630 |
| Oregon | $104,590 | $82,000 to $141,720 | 730 |
| Pennsylvania | $77,090 | $62,430 to $101,550 | 6,800 |
| Puerto Rico | $76,450 | $52,830 to $104,460 | 810 |
| Rhode Island | $101,660 | $85,610 to $124,750 | 150 |
| South Carolina | $79,670 | $64,860 to $105,820 | 770 |
| South Dakota | $67,440 | $58,940 to $83,590 | 170 |
| Tennessee | $87,930 | $58,420 to $104,030 | 960 |
| Texas | $99,640 | $73,160 to $139,010 | 5,130 |
| Utah | $80,770 | $63,610 to $101,570 | 910 |
| Vermont | $86,120 | $74,420 to $108,300 | 80 |
| Virginia | $96,650 | $65,980 to $136,660 | 1,640 |
| Washington | $97,420 | $77,390 to $128,500 | 2,280 |
| West Virginia | $85,560 | $73,730 to $111,360 | 180 |
| Wisconsin | $78,730 | $64,760 to $96,720 | 1,920 |
| Wyoming | $102,000 | $76,680 to $127,120 | 80 |
Nationally: $91,240. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 6 of its 12 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI + software | Develop, improve, or customize products, equipment, formulas, processes, or analytical methods. | Not published |
| AI alone | Write technical papers or reports or prepare standards and specifications for processes, facilities, products, or tests. | Not published |
| Not much | Maintain laboratory instruments to ensure proper working order and troubleshoot malfunctions when needed. | Not published |
| AI + software | Analyze organic or inorganic compounds to determine chemical or physical properties, composition, structure, relationships, or reactions, using chromatography, spectroscopy, or spectrophotometry techniques. | under 0.01% |
| AI alone | Confer with scientists or engineers to conduct analyses of research projects, interpret test results, or develop nonstandard tests. | Not published |
| Not much | Conduct quality control tests. | Not published |
See all 12 tasks
| AI + software | Compile and analyze test information to determine process or equipment operating efficiency or to diagnose malfunctions. | 0.06% |
| Not much | Evaluate laboratory safety procedures to ensure compliance with standards or to make improvements as needed. | Not published |
| Not much | Prepare test solutions, compounds, or reagents for laboratory personnel to conduct tests. | Not published |
| Not much | Direct, coordinate, or advise personnel in test procedures for analyzing components or physical properties of materials. | Not published |
| AI alone | Purchase laboratory supplies, such as chemicals, when supplies are low or near their expiration date. | Not published |
| Not much | Induce changes in composition of substances by introducing heat, light, energy, or chemical catalysts for quantitative or qualitative analysis. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 2 of the 12 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 12 tasks fall under 13 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #20 Present research or technical information
- #42 Diagnose system or equipment problems
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Analyze biological or chemical substances or related data | |||
| Develop operational or technical procedures or standards | |||
| Present research or technical information | |||
| Diagnose system or equipment problems | |||
| Analyze performance of systems or equipment | |||
| Assist scientists, scholars, or technical specialists with projects or research | |||
| Maintain electronic, computer, or other technical equipment | |||
| Test characteristics of materials or products |
Show all 13 activities
| Monitor operations to ensure adequate performance | |||
| Analyze data to improve operations | |||
| Direct scientific or technical activities | |||
| Supervise personnel activities | |||
| Prepare specimens or materials for testing |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- A document or report20%
- An analysis or summary18%
- An explanation or answer13%
- Code fixes or debugging10%
- A script or snippet9%
How they worked with Claude
63% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for chemists specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 30,648 moves out
- 1 Operations Research Analysts Very high +11.9% 13%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 7%
- 3 Management Analysts Very high +10.1% 4%
- 4 Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians 3%
- 5 Postsecondary Teachers, All Other Very high +2.0% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 32,198 moves in
- 1 Operations Research Analysts Very high +11.9% 15%
- 2 Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians 6%
- 3 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 5%
- 4 Teachers and Instructors, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 3%
- 5 Medical and Health Services Managers High +24.2% 2%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 56% bachelor's
- 4% post-bachelor's certificate
- 10% master's
- 30% research doctorate
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 20 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 1% less than high school
- 2% high school
- 2% some college
- 2% associate's
- 51% bachelor's
- 22% master's
- 2% professional degree
- 18% doctorate
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Chemists and materials scientists” · 993 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Chemists and materials scientists”
14 programs, such as Chemistry, General, Analytical Chemistry and Inorganic Chemistry.
See all
- Chemistry, General
- Analytical Chemistry
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Organic Chemistry
- Physical Chemistry
- Polymer Chemistry
- Chemical Physics
- Environmental Chemistry
- Forensic Chemistry
- Theoretical Chemistry
- Cheminformatics/Chemistry Informatics
- Chemistry, Other
- Materials Chemistry
- Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
5.9% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | <0.5% | 19.1% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a certification | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS · Brynjolfsson, Chandar and Chen, Stanford (Aug 2026)
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/19-2031.00