Side-by-side distribution
Environmental Scientist
$80,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 52.9%
- Live roles
- 34
Postdoc
$95,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 54.1%
- Live roles
- 37
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Consultant, Claims Casualty - E&S/Specialty (Traditional Environmental Property Damage and Bodily Injury)
Computational Ecologist
Senior Managing Consultant, Environmental Services
Principal Consultant, Environmental Health and Safety (EHS)
Environmental Consultant – Senior Level – Mining Focus (Hybrid)
Principal Consultant, Environmental FERC Project Manager
Loss Control Consultant - Environmental
Principal Ecologist – Energy
Environmental Consultant – Mid/Senior Level – Sediment Remediation (Hybrid)
Environmental Consultant – Senior Level (Hybrid)
Highest-paying jobs
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Physics Expert (PhD / Postdoc)
Physics Expert (Postdoc / Junior professor)
Postdoctoral Researcher, Real-Time Generative AI for Automotive XR
Clinical Sciences FY27 Postdoctoral Fellow – Open Pool
Postdoctoral Research Associate / Fellow (Cognitive Science of Language)
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Postdoctoral Research Fellow - Protein Engineering for Biocatalysis
PostDoc – Machine Learning
Postdoctoral Researcher – Quantum Devices and Experiments (NST)
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
ERM
|
$107,123 | 17 |
|
Barr Engineering
|
$116,250 | 6 |
| SC SLR Consulting | $90,500 | 6 |
AtkinsRéalis
|
$86,425 | 6 |
Apex Companies
|
$71,750 | 6 |
Triumvirate Environmental
|
$80,000 | 3 |
Kpaonline
|
$72,500 | 3 |
| TE True Environmental | $70,000 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
The University of Texas at Austin
|
$65,000 | 24 |
| UO University of Queensland | $99,516 | 12 |
| NO Novartis | $82,550 | 11 |
University of British Columbia
|
$62,500 | 11 |
| BI Beth Israel Lahey Health | $60,000 | 11 |
| MG Mass General Brigham | $70,875 | 9 |
Roche
|
$103,250 | 8 |
| CS Colorado State University | $66,250 | 8 |
Environmental Scientist salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $121,061 | 4 |
| Los Angeles | $117,653 | 4 |
| Austin | $96,292 | 3 |
| New York | $80,000 | 7 |
Postdoc salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $103,250 | 11 |
| New York | $74,787 | 9 |
| Boston | $72,754 | 13 |
| Austin | $63,480 | 9 |
Environmental Scientist vs Postdoc: which pays more?
The median for Environmental Scientist is $80,000 per year (typically $63,500–$91,800), versus $95,000 for Postdoc ($80,000–$115,000). That puts Postdoc about 19% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Environmental Scientist and Postdoc are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.