Senior Chemist salary in San Jose, CA

Based on 17 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level III in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Palo Alto, Milpitas, Santa Clara, Stanford, Sunnyvale.

Also listed as: Quality Control Chemist, Analytical Chemist

Median salary$145,000

Middle 50%$127.4k–$150.1k

vs. all levels here+5%comparison median $138,590

Filings17FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

All levels here

$110k$120k$130k$140k$150k$160k$170k

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $116,160 and $169,020.

Percentile	Salary
10th	$122,005
25th	$127,393
50th (median)	$145,000
75th	$150,051
90th	$159,083

Cost of living

San Jose's median senior Chemist salary of $145,000 is worth about $131,300 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Jose = 110.4).

Compared with all workers here

All Chemists in the San Jose, CA area earned a median of $114,890 in May 2025 (580 employed). The H-1B median here is $145,000, 26% higher.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Employers filing at this level

Employer	Median	Filings
Applied Materials	too few	3
Headway Technologies	too few	2
Jones Day	too few	2
Kodiak Sciences	too few	2
Thermo Fisher Scientific	too few	2
Western Digital Technologies	too few	2

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage level	Median	Filings
Entry-level · Level I	$83,658	12
Mid-level · Level II	$100,630	11
Senior · Level III	$145,000	17
Expert · Level IV	$150,051	13

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage level	Prevailing wage (most common)	Median offered salary	Filings
Entry-level · Level I	$69,014	$83,658	12
Mid-level · Level II	$92,206	$100,630	11
Senior · Level III	$125,341	$145,000	17
Expert · Level IV	$150,051	$150,051	13

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.