How much do regulatory affairs specialists make in 2026?
Regulatory affairs specialists are counted in the BLS compliance officers series: OEWS May 2025 gives SOC 13-1041 a national median of $80,730 a year ($38.81 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $48,220 and the top 10% at $133,720 across 417,070 workers. That is a broad compliance code shared with several published records on this site, and life sciences regulatory affairs professionals typically sit above its median because the work requires scientific literacy on top of regulatory knowledge. The role is the interface between a company's products and the agencies that authorise them: preparing and managing marketing applications and submissions, assembling and maintaining the technical documentation that supports them, managing post-approval changes and variations, responding to agency questions within defined timeframes, and advising development teams on what evidence a regulator will actually require. Product type shapes the work considerably. Pharmaceutical and biologics regulatory work centres on marketing applications and lifecycle management; medical device work runs through classification, submissions and quality system requirements; and combination products require both. Specialists who own submissions rather than supporting them, and who have direct agency interaction experience, sit in the upper part of this band. Employment is projected to grow 3% through 2034 with roughly 33,300 openings a year. → Full regulatory affairs specialist career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $80,730 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Regulatory Affairs Specialists earn a national median $80,730/yr ($38.81/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 13-1041); the P10 to P90 range is $48,220 to $133,720.
- Life sciences regulatory professionals sit above the pooled compliance officer median because the work requires scientific literacy alongside regulatory knowledge.
- Owning submissions rather than supporting them, and having direct agency interaction experience, is what moves a specialist into the upper part of the $48,220 to $133,720 band.
- Product type shapes the discipline: pharmaceutical work centres on marketing applications and lifecycle management, device work on classification, submissions and quality systems.
US Regulatory Affairs Specialist Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do regulatory affairs specialists earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 13-1041; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 13-1041, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does a regulatory affairs specialist earn at each career stage?
Regulatory affairs pay follows whether you own the submission or contribute to it. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 13-1041.
By State
Which states pay regulatory affairs specialists the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the national compliance officer median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Regulatory affairs roles sit at pharmaceutical, biotechnology and device company headquarters and development sites, which concentrates them in a small number of life sciences regions.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($92,840), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay regulatory affairs specialists the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations. Life sciences corporate centres carry most of these positions, though remote working has become common in the discipline.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise a regulatory affairs specialist’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does regulatory affairs specialist pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Regulatory Affairs Specialists sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify regulatory affairs specialist wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a regulatory affairs specialist actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Regulatory Affairs Specialist Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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