Food Scientists and Technologists Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $84K, rent takes 42.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,250/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,600/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new food scientists and technologists typically earn — is $57K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,398/month.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $84K locally vs. $89K nationally, a 5% difference.

Southeast Iowa nonmetropolitan area pays $84K median vs. the U.S. average of $89K — that’s -5%.

The median is $83,880 a year, that works out to about $40 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,630, and experienced food scientists and technologists can clear $125,880. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,253/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,250/month, which eats 42.8% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

Southeast Iowa nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median food scientists and technologists salary is worth about $83,880 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.