Life & Physical Science
Agricultural Scientists
SOC 19-1011
Research how to improve crop yields, pest resistance, and farm sustainability.
The job
Median pay
$69k
$50k to $103k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing fast
+5.8% projected
Openings a year
200
BLS projection
Typical education
Bachelor's
Our model
AI displacement risk
Moderate
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
6/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
43rd pct
More exposed than 43% of occupations · modeled estimate · 83rd pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
55/100
Key skills
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Science
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Speaking
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 280 | 0.1 | 4.8× | $84k |
| Nebraska | 210 | 0.2 | 10.3× | $55k |
| Maryland | 190 | 0.1 | 3.5× | $78k |
| New York | 178 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $70k~ |
| Massachusetts | 164 | 0.0 | 2.3× | $87k~ |
| California | 140 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $85k~ |
| Florida | 117 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $63k~ |
| North Carolina | 114 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $66k~ |
| Minnesota | 100 | 0.0 | 1.7× | $89k |
| Illinois | 98 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $48k~ |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia | 91 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $72k~ |
| Ohio | 90 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $66k~ |
| Pennsylvania | 90 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $78k |
| South Dakota | 90 | 0.2 | 9.9× | $77k |
| New Jersey | 87 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $75k~ |
| Michigan | 80 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $60k |
| Colorado | 76 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $71k~ |
| Arkansas | 60 | 0.0 | 2.3× | $52k~ |
| Georgia | 60 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $66k~ |
| Iowa | 60 | 0.0 | 1.9× | $75k |
| Indiana | 57 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $61k~ |
| Oregon | 50 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $67k~ |
| Arizona | 49 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $67k~ |
| Missouri | 48 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $63k~ |
| Tennessee | 47 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $64k~ |
| North Dakota | 40 | 0.1 | 4.7× | $72k |
| Texas | 40 | 0.0 | 0.1× | $133k |
| Washington | 40 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $83k |
| Washington DC | 37 | 0.1 | 2.6× | $107k~ |
| South Carolina | 35 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $63k~ |
| Utah | 35 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $64k~ |
| Louisiana | 32 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $63k~ |
| Alabama | 31 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $62k~ |
| Kentucky | 30 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $60k~ |
| Connecticut | 27 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $82k~ |
| Idaho | 26 | 0.0 | 1.5× | $56k~ |
| Kansas | 26 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $80k~ |
| Oklahoma | 25 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $62k~ |
| Nevada | 23 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $67k~ |
| New Mexico | 21 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $67k~ |
| Montana | 19 | 0.0 | 1.9× | $59k~ |
| Mississippi | 17 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $54k~ |
| Hawaii | 16 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $62k~ |
| Alaska | 15 | 0.0 | 2.3× | $72k~ |
| West Virginia | 15 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $57k~ |
| Delaware | 13 | 0.0 | 1.4× | $70k~ |
| New Hampshire | 13 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $66k~ |
| Maine | 12 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $63k~ |
| Rhode Island | 9 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $75k~ |
| Wyoming | 9 | 0.0 | 1.6× | $61k~ |
| Vermont | 7 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $63k~ |
Top metro areas
- Madison, WI220 jobs · $84k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV160 jobs · $83k median
- Lincoln, NE100 jobs · $79k median
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD60 jobs · $78k median
- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD40 jobs · $64k median
- Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR40 jobs · $240k median
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI40 jobs · $77k median
- Omaha, NE-IA40 jobs · $74k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Agricultural Scientists interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.