Start with the answer
Life Scientists, All Other pay in Pittsburgh, PA and San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Life Scientists, All Other is $81,540 per year in Pittsburgh, PA. It is $134,810 per year in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Pittsburgh, PA is 39.5% below San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 19-1099 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 80 wage and salary jobs in Pittsburgh, PA and 170 in San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings