Start with the answer
Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists pay in Syracuse, NY and Vallejo, CA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Medical Scientists, Except Epidemiologists is $138,940 per year in Syracuse, NY. It is $168,860 per year in Vallejo, CA. Syracuse, NY is 17.7% below Vallejo, CA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 19-1042 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 160 wage and salary jobs in Syracuse, NY and 130 in Vallejo, 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
