Starting Salary for a Pharmacist

It’s no secret that pharmacists are well-paid. According to the Bureau of Labor, the median salary for a pharmacist in 2015 was $121,500 or about $53.46 per hour.

On the lower end (bottom 10%), pharmacists make about $86,750 per year. On the higher end (top 10%), pharmacists earn more than $154,620 annually.

The medium wage for pharmacists in top industries are as follows:

  • Department stores $125,500
  • Grocery stores $121,630
  • Pharmacies and drug stores $121,310
  • General medical and surgical hospitals; private $121,050

National chains that hire pharmacists include:

  • CVS
  • Rite Aid
  • WalgreensPharmacist Salaries in the USA. Walgreen pharmacy at night

Work Environment:

Pharmacies and drug stores 42%
General medical and surgical hospitals; private 19%
Grocery stores 8%
Department stores 4%

If you examine Indeed.com statistics, $117,000 is the average salary for a pharmacist job posted in 2016 on their website. That’s 88% higher than all job postings nationwide.

As of 2016, there are 275,000 pharmacists employed in the United States. That number is expected to grow by 25% over the current decade, meaning around 70,000 new employment opportunities will be created in this field.