Life & Physical Science
Hydrologists
SOC 19-2043
Study how water moves through the environment and advise on water management.
The job
Median pay
$97k
$77k to $123k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing
+1.5% projected
Openings a year
400
BLS projection
Typical education
Bachelor's
Our model
AI displacement risk
High
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
74th pct
More exposed than 74% of occupations · modeled estimate · 64th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
51/100
Key skills
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Science
- Speaking
- Mathematics
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 540 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $122k |
| Arizona | 400 | 0.1 | 3.3× | $87k |
| Ohio | 390 | 0.1 | 1.9× | $98k |
| Colorado | 360 | 0.1 | 3.3× | $101k |
| Washington | 350 | 0.1 | 2.6× | $106k |
| Minnesota | 300 | 0.1 | 2.7× | $95k |
| Oregon | 300 | 0.2 | 4.0× | $94k |
| Florida | 280 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $77k |
| Texas | 220 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $81k |
| Montana | 190 | 0.4 | 9.9× | $85k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 170 | 0.1 | 2.9× | $108k |
| New Jersey | 165 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $127k~ |
| Idaho | 160 | 0.2 | 5.0× | $79k |
| New York | 160 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $88k |
| Pennsylvania | 160 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $92k |
| North Carolina | 150 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $82k |
| Tennessee | 150 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $89k~ |
| Wisconsin | 150 | 0.1 | 1.4× | $79k |
| Illinois | 100 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $84k |
| New Mexico | 100 | 0.1 | 3.0× | $97k |
| South Carolina | 100 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $66k |
| Maryland | 90 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $143k |
| Utah | 80 | 0.0 | 1.2× | $94k |
| Washington DC | 71 | 0.1 | 2.7× | $151k~ |
| Louisiana | 61 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $105k~ |
| Alaska | 60 | 0.2 | 4.9× | $109k |
| Alabama | 58 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $87k~ |
| Kentucky | 55 | 0.0 | 0.7× | $84k~ |
| Connecticut | 51 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $115k~ |
| Indiana | 50 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $81k |
| Iowa | 50 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $81k |
| Kansas | 50 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $85k~ |
| Massachusetts | 50 | 0.0 | 0.4× | $119k |
| Missouri | 50 | 0.0 | 0.5× | $116k |
| Vermont | 50 | 0.2 | 4.4× | $86k |
| Michigan | 40 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $101k |
| Oklahoma | 40 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $97k |
| Virginia | 40 | 0.0 | 0.3× | $132k |
| Wyoming | 40 | 0.1 | 3.8× | $95k |
| Nebraska | 37 | 0.0 | 1.0× | $78k~ |
| Mississippi | 33 | 0.0 | 0.8× | $76k~ |
| Arkansas | 31 | 0.0 | 0.6× | $74k~ |
| Georgia | 30 | 0.0 | 0.2× | $122k |
| Hawaii | 30 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $87k~ |
| West Virginia | 29 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $80k~ |
| Delaware | 24 | 0.0 | 1.3× | $99k~ |
| New Hampshire | 24 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $93k~ |
| Maine | 22 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $88k~ |
| South Dakota | 19 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $77k~ |
| North Dakota | 18 | 0.0 | 1.1× | $84k~ |
| Rhode Island | 17 | 0.0 | 0.9× | $104k~ |
Top metro areas
- Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ260 jobs · $90k median
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI210 jobs · $95k median
- Columbus, OH170 jobs · $98k median
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO140 jobs · $109k median
- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA140 jobs
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ130 jobs · $88k median
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA110 jobs · $107k median
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX100 jobs · $74k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Hydrologists 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.