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Soil and Plant Scientists pay in Auburn-Opelika, AL and Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Soil and Plant Scientists is $61,840 per year in Auburn-Opelika, AL. It is $132,290 per year in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA. Auburn-Opelika, AL is 53.3% below Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 19-1013 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 40 wage and salary jobs in Auburn-Opelika, AL and 430 in Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA. 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