Greater Seattle Named Ninth-Best Place for Life Sciences Talent in Inaugural CBRE Report

Greater Seattle is the ninth-leading market for U.S. life sciences talent, according to a new analysis conducted by CBRE. The inaugural report identifies the 25 top U.S. life sciences labor markets - ranging from established hotbeds like Boston and San Francisco to developing hubs like the Puget Sound region - illustrating the expanding reach of the fast-growing industry. 

Seattle ranked ninth overall but higher in relation to specific jobs. The Puget Sound region has the third-highest density of data scientists and the fourth-highest density of medical scientists, reflecting the area’s industry-leading tech companies and healthcare institutions. 

The Puget Sound region has the nation’s fifth-highest concentration of life sciences researchers as a share of its total labor force. The overall number of life sciences researchers in the Seattle area grew 24 percent from 2015 to 2020, the seventh-fastest growth rate among the 25 leading markets. With 12,100 researchers, the Puget Sound region is the ninth largest U.S. market for life sciences talent. 

“It’s no secret that AI, machine learning, and computational research are paving a next generation of scientific innovation. The Puget Sound region’s deep technology roots coupled with world-class research institutions and their dedication to commercialization has thrust Seattle into a leadership role across a wide array of scientific verticals,” said Marcus Yamamoto, a senior vice president with CBRE in Seattle specializing in life sciences and healthcare. 

CBRE assessed each market against multiple criteria, including its number of life sciences jobs and graduates, life sciences’ share of each market’s overall job and graduate pool, its number of doctorate degree holders in life sciences, and its concentration of jobs in the broader professional, scientific and technical services professions. The analysis produced CBRE’s inaugural ranking of the leading markets for U.S. life sciences talent.

Rank	Market	Score	Rank	Market	Score
1	Boston/Cambridge	138	14	Atlanta	103.5
2	Washington, D.C./Baltimore	129.8	15	Worcester, MA	102.6
3	San Francisco Bay Area	126.2	16	Dallas/Fort Worth	102
4	New York/New Jersey	124.3	17	Sacramento	101.8
5	San Diego	120.3	18	Austin	101.5
6	Raleigh-Durham	114.8	19	Salt Lake City	101.4
7	Los Angeles/Orange County	113.8	20	New Haven, CT	100.8
8	Philadelphia	113.5	21	Portland, OR	100.7
9	Seattle	109.4	22	Miami	100.7
10	Chicago	107.6	23	Nashville	100.6
11	Denver/Boulder	106.9	24	Albany, NY	100.3
12	Minneapolis/St. Paul	106.4	25	Pittsburgh	100
13	Houston	104.1

National Perspective

Job growth in life sciences professions – from bioengineers and biochemists to microbiologists and data scientists – expanded by 79 percent since 2001 to roughly 500,000. In comparison, the overall U.S. job growth rate in that span was 8 percent. That surge in life sciences jobs boosted mainstay markets such as Boston and San Francisco as well as emerging and developing hubs including Nashville, Salt Lake City, Houston and Seattle.

“There is a conventional view of life sciences that emphasizes large lab markets such as Boston, the Bay Area and San Diego. With this new report, we take a broader view, analyzing life sciences workforces across the U.S. as well as the connection that talent has to how – and where – companies grow,” said Matt Gardner, CBRE Americas Life Sciences Leader.

“It’s also important to keep in mind that the life sciences industry encompasses more than drug development in the lab,” he said. “Major growth drivers for life sciences – even amid market headwinds - include personalized treatment, advanced materials and future foods.”

Another factor reflecting the sector’s growth: the number of U.S. graduates receiving degrees in biological and biomedical sciences reached nearly 164,000 in 2020, twice as many as 15 years earlier. Even with that influx of talent, the unemployment rate for life, physical and social sciences was less than 1 percent as of April 2022.

CBRE’s analysis allows for examination of the 25 markets from various angles. One unexpected finding likely is relevant for expanding companies; Life sciences wages don’t vary geographically as much as those of many other industries do. Yet the market-to-market variance of cost of living means some markets are more affordable for life sciences workers than others. The average wage for a biochemist in Seattle is $100,248, creating a ratio of 1.51 to the region’s annual cost of living. This is a lower ratio than most inland markets but is competitive to the coastal hubs of the San Francisco Bay Area (with a ratio of 1.28), Los Angeles/Orange County (1.37), San Diego (1.37) and Boston/Cambridge (1.46).

To read the full report, click here.