Highest-paying Cities for Forensic Science Technicians

The top 100 highest paying cities for forensic science technicians (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment of forensic science technicians in those cities are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with a annual salary of $104,860, San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California is the highest paying city for forensic science technicians. It is followed by Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California (average annual salary $99,100). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in April 2023 [1]. For more salary information of forensic science technicians in a specific city, use the links in the table.

Table 1. 100 Highest-paying cities/areas for Forensic Science Technicians

Rank	City/Area	Average Salary i	Entry Level Salary i	# of Empl. i
1	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California	$104,860	$63,070	140
2	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California	$99,100	$60,640	1,030
3	Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California	$98,820	$50,590	50
4	Akron, Ohio	$95,930	$50,730	70
5	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL-IN-WI Area), Illinois	$95,560	$53,300	240
6	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, California	$94,600	$53,720	730
7	Springfield, Illinois	$90,040	$56,270	50
8	Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Washington	$88,480	$62,100	120
9	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, California	$88,460	$62,060	340
10	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, District of Columbia	$83,930	$56,720	420
11	Chicago-Joliet-Naperville (IL Metropolitan Division), Illinois	$83,560	$53,860	390
12	Flagstaff, Arizona	$83,340	$36,270	30
13	San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, California	$82,890	$49,750	210
14	Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, California	$82,220	$54,520	160
15	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$82,170	$60,200	70
16	New Haven, Connecticut	$81,440	$71,090	70
17	Topeka, Kansas	$80,910	$50,100	60
18	San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California	$80,790	$60,490	70
19	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, California	$80,740	$48,750	730
20	Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, California	$80,520	$56,080	150
21	Missoula, Montana	$80,060	$50,390	30
22	Buffalo-Niagara Falls, New York	$79,930	$63,810	30
23	Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, California	$79,550	$52,420	280
24	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, West Virginia	$79,500	$51,890	430
25	Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington, Wisconsin	$79,210	$47,900	130
26	New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, New York	$79,140	$62,880	490
27	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington	$77,170	$64,020	200
28	Toledo, Ohio	$77,140	$51,960	40
29	Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, Colorado	$76,960	$55,040	280
30	Santa Rosa-Petaluma, California	$76,880	$68,460	30
31	Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, California	$75,190	$41,880	200
32	Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida	$73,980	$48,540	440
33	Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Massachusetts	$71,930	$60,390	40
34	Lake County-Kenosha County, Wisconsin	$71,790	$43,380	30
35	Knoxville, Tennessee	$71,050	$43,690	50
36	Lansing-East Lansing, Michigan	$70,940	$40,740	90
37	Santa Fe, New Mexico	$70,720	$31,650	30
38	Dayton, Ohio	$69,800	$47,400	40
39	Roanoke, Virginia	$69,620	$46,700	50
40	Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York	$69,240	$50,930	130
41	Fort Wayne, Indiana	$68,770	$44,620	40
42	Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Washington	$68,500	$45,370	210
43	Bakersfield-Delano, California	$67,910	$40,430	50
44	Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, Michigan	$67,510	$41,790	30
45	Anchorage, Alaska	$67,370	$52,420	50
46	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	$67,120	$38,820	110
47	Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa	$66,640	$55,000	80
48	Richmond, Virginia	$66,480	$45,470	140
49	Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida	$66,250	$29,350	60
50	Reno-Sparks, Nevada	$65,170	$47,010	100
51	Grand Rapids-Wyoming, Michigan	$65,060	$26,310	90
52	Spokane, Washington	$64,980	$41,960	n/a
53	Colorado Springs, Colorado	$64,950	$63,760	30
54	Fresno, California	$64,880	$48,920	60
55	Baltimore-Towson, Maryland	$64,500	$47,080	300
56	Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Maryland	$64,230	$33,230	300
57	Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Arizona	$64,100	$40,820	580
58	Stockton, California	$63,910	$39,990	40
59	Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas	$63,730	$41,990	680
60	Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio	$63,620	$40,320	50
61	Kansas City, Missouri	$63,530	$48,760	110
62	Tacoma, Washington	$63,530	$51,150	50
63	Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, Tennessee	$62,960	$42,850	150
64	Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$62,880	$40,430	460
65	Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada	$62,650	$43,180	260
66	West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Boynton Beach, Florida	$62,580	$39,550	80
67	Columbus, Ohio	$62,080	$48,490	180
68	Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska	$62,060	$51,220	50
69	Baton Rouge, Louisiana	$62,030	$39,660	110
70	Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor, Ohio	$61,820	$39,900	100
71	New York-White Plains-Wayne, New York	$61,590	$44,690	390
72	Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin	$61,330	$43,080	120
73	Indianapolis-Carmel, Indiana	$61,150	$38,070	190
74	St Louis, Missouri	$60,450	$48,120	80
75	Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas	$59,930	$30,040	50
76	Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Michigan	$59,240	$27,140	90
77	Western Washington nonmetropolitan area, Washington	$59,200	$39,170	n/a
78	Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida	$58,660	$37,520	370
79	Birmingham-Hoover, Alabama	$57,840	$46,430	50
80	Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Florida	$57,600	$40,830	130
81	Jefferson City, Missouri	$57,360	$40,290	60
82	Trenton-Ewing, New Jersey	$56,880	$41,660	40
83	Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	$56,830	$37,430	110
84	Springfield, Missouri	$56,790	$29,520	40
85	Urban Honolulu, Hawaii	$56,170	$43,690	70
86	Salt Lake City, Utah	$55,750	$41,720	140
87	Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Deerfield Beach, Florida	$55,140	$38,930	100
88	Evansville, Kentucky	$54,350	$40,160	n/a
89	Lincoln, Nebraska	$54,330	$41,770	30
90	Jackson, Mississippi	$54,120	$33,110	70
91	Rochester, New York	$54,100	$41,500	30
92	Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida	$53,500	$33,320	50
93	Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia	$53,470	$39,810	120
94	San Antonio-New Braunfels, Texas	$53,090	$38,360	170
95	North Arizona nonmetropolitan area, Arizona	$53,060	$36,550	30
96	Boise City-Nampa, Idaho	$52,810	$38,300	90
97	Newark-Union, Pennsylvania	$52,690	$32,370	40
98	Detroit-Warren-Livonia, Michigan	$52,640	$27,620	200
99	Jacksonville, Florida	$52,030	$31,250	130
100	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	$51,580	$41,610	100

See also: 💰 Highest paying industries for forensic science technicians.