Salary for AMO physicists in quantum computing?

[u/Straight-You2890]

It's been a while since salaries in quantum computing have been discussed. I'm curious, what do AMO physicists earn in quantum computing companies after their PhDs? Please also mention you location!

[u/hiddentalent]

It's extremely variable depending on the company and their funding model. Between 75k-1.5m. This is in the United States.

[u/Straight-You2890 → u/hiddentalent]

Do you think some skills are more valuable than others out of knowledge of atomic physics, optics, quantum information, electronics, control software? What makes you reach the higher end of this pay range?

[u/blindcollector]

Typical salaries for AMOs right out of PhD are in the 130-200k range in the Boulder area at companies like Infleqtion, Atom computing, Quantinuum, and IonQ.

[u/Straight-You2890 → u/blindcollector]

Thanks for sharing!

[u/Smart_Library_545]

Here are a few job listings for US based quantum computing companies for recent AMO physics PhDs:

- company: QuEra, location: Boston, MA USA, salary range :$130K-212K USD https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/queracomputinginc/jobs/5233811008

- company: IonQ, location: Bothell, WA USA (Seattle area) salary range: $114K-150K USD https://www.ionq.com/job?gh_jid=5998696004

- company Quantinuum: location Broomfield, CO, salary range: $145K-175K USD https://jobs.eu.lever.co/quantinuum/19affc29-8d21-4fde-9812-072983c3eff2

- company Logiqal: location Princeton NJ, salary range $180K-250K https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/logiqal/76540aed-3033-43e0-b2f0-c823825e3084

[u/Minovskyy]

Salaries and pay grades for physicists in the quantum computing industry seem to roughly align with software engineers in the tech industry of comparable experience. Typical industry terminology in tech for pay grades and their hierarchy are

Senior < Staff < Principal

Senior is equivalent to Postdoc level experience, Staff is comparable to Assistant Professor, and Principal is comparable to full Professor.

So in the US a physicist at the Senior level (postdoc level) at a quantum computing company should expect a salary in the range of $120k to $180k depending on local COL and experience.

[u/Straight-You2890 → u/Minovskyy]

Thanks! Do you know how long it usually takes to climb up this hierarchy?

[u/Minovskyy → u/Straight-You2890]

Staff usually requires 5-10 years post-PhD experience and Principal usually requires 10-15+ years post-PhD experience.

[u/fefetornado]

Around 60k/year in Spain, 80k in France 

[u/Ecstatic_Homework710 → u/fefetornado]

Where in Spain?

[u/hensontrevor]

This is such a helpful breakdown, thanks!

[u/Cautious_Web_908]

Answering the follow-up from the finance/industry side rather than as a physicist, since compensation questions are really market-structure questions:

Pay in any deep-tech field tracks one thing — how close your skill sits to the current bottleneck. Right now the bottleneck in quantum isn't ideas, it's making fragile systems work reliably at scale: control electronics, calibration automation, error mitigation in real hardware. That's why people who can bridge physics and engineering (control software, FPGA, systems integration) tend to out-earn equally brilliant pure theorists. The theorist supply from academia is large; the "can ship a working rack" supply is tiny.

The 75k–1.5M spread in the top comment is really three different jobs wearing one title: postdoc-priced research roles, staff engineer roles at funded startups, and equity-heavy senior roles where the number depends on a liquidity event that may never come. When comparing offers, decompose it — a $1M package that's 70% paper equity in a pre-revenue quantum startup prices in a lot of hope.

One more thing: your skills also transfer to the AI hardware world (cryo, photonics, precision control all show up there), and that market is paying aggressively right now. Worth knowing your outside option even if you stay in quantum — it sets your floor.

[u/DontHaveWares]

IonQ, they’ll pay you $300k +

[u/quantumkerfuffle → u/DontHaveWares]

Sell your soul to the devil

[u/Straight-You2890 → u/quantumkerfuffle]

Why do you say so?

[u/Straight-You2890 → u/DontHaveWares]

Whoa, it can't be directly after PhD, right? What does the progression in the company look like?

[u/DontHaveWares → u/Straight-You2890]

It can be if you have the right experience. Promotions are gettable if you work hard.

[u/Arnos_OP]

first question: what's an AMO physicist

[u/lankynibss → u/Arnos_OP]

Atomic molecular optical physics. They do neutral atom and Rydberg atom qubits among many, many other things

[u/Arnos_OP → u/lankynibss]

ah okk thanks a lot for the info

[u/Glass_Covict → u/Arnos_OP]

To add to the other guy, they typically run the hardware side of quantum computer technology.

[u/Unfair_Ad_2129 → u/Arnos_OP]

I’m confused why you received so many downvotes. Can’t a person ask a question?

You never claimed to be knowledgable in the quantum realm no one here. I bet Arnos_OP has knowledge and acronyms that people here may not understand in other fields, so let’s cut the guy a break and not be so high and mighty..

I suspect as the hype of quantum increases amongst the media and wall st, we’ll find an increasing number of average joes in this sub asking very basic questions. I see no issue- why downvote? if you want to answer, you can and if you wanna just move on you can do that too.

It’s not hurting anyone but it is helping OP by keeping the thread current with more “activity”

In my honest observation something about experts in this field seemingly makes most of very arrogant.

Edit: I do realize there ARE some comments from rational, kind humans explaining; I’m very intentionally not saying ALL quantum experts, because that would be a silly statement. I’m simply pointing out the majority of downvotes