Life Scientists, All Other Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $110K, rent takes 26.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,795/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new life scientists, all others typically earn — is $83K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $4,990/month. At HUD’s $1,795/month FMR, rent would take 36% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay is 17% above the national median — $110K here vs. $94K nationally.

Maryland pays $110K median vs. the U.S. average of $94K — that’s +17%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 98.76), the purchasing-power equivalent is $111K — still ahead of the national median.

The median is $109,700 a year, that works out to about $53 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $83,160, and experienced life scientists, all others can clear $171,020. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $6,709/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,795/month, which eats 26.8% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Maryland has a Regional Price Parity of 98.76 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median life scientists, all other salary is worth about $111,077 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.