Clinical Research Coordinator.
Philadelphia.
$65,000
median salary, 12% above the national average
$52,000 to $82,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
Philadelphia is 9% more expensive than the national average. For Clinical Research Coordinators, that shakes out to a median of $65,000, with the full range spanning $52,000 to $82,000. Therapeutic area and trial phase drive the biggest pay differences. Know the range before you walk in. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Clinical Research Coordinator in Philadelphia, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $61,760 for Social Science Research Assistants (SOC 19-4061) in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metropolitan area, based on 560 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$48,230
25th percentile
$48,630
Median
$61,760
75th percentile
$75,140
90th percentile
$82,920
Workers surveyed
560
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Social Science Research Assistants (SOC 19-4061) rather than Clinical Research Coordinator specifically. The Philadelphiarange at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 19-4061Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $59,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$42,000
to $52,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$55,000
to $68,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$72,000
to $85,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$81,000
to $101,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $13,000 to the total package.
Base
$65,000
Equity
$7,000
Bonus
$5,000
Signing
$1,000
Estimated total: $78,000
How Philadelphia compares.
Philadelphia, PA
$65,000
Cost of living: 9% above average
National Average
$58,000
Philadelphia is $7,000 above
Clinical Research Coordinator salary by city.
Salary by role in Philadelphia.
What you should know.
Here is what the Clinical Research Coordinator market actually looks like in Philadelphia. Philadelphia combines a robust healthcare and life sciences sector with established finance and higher education institutions. The city's pharmaceutical corridor is among the strongest in the country. Tech growth has accelerated, particularly in health tech and enterprise software, offering salaries that stretch further than in nearby New York. Therapeutic area and trial phase drive the biggest pay differences. Oncology, gene therapy, and Phase I trials pay the most due to protocol complexity. ACRP or SoCRA certification adds 8 to 12% above non-certified coordinators. Academic medical centers and large CROs in biotech hubs offer the highest salaries.
Entry-level CRCs start at $48,000 to $55,000 with a science degree. Certified CRCs with three to five years of experience earn $65,000 to $80,000. Senior CRCs or clinical research managers can reach $85,000 to $110,000 overseeing multi-site trials and regulatory submissions. In Philadelphia, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
Base salary is not the full picture. CRCs receive benefits including tuition reimbursement, certification exam fees, and conference attendance stipends. CRO-employed coordinators may receive project completion bonuses of $2,000 to $5,000. Some pharmaceutical sponsors offer annual merit increases of 3 to 6%. And on the tax side: pennsylvania has a flat 3.07% state income tax, but Philadelphia adds a 3.75% city wage tax for residents. This combined local burden is worth factoring into salary negotiations. When someone quotes you $65,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Account for the Philadelphia wage tax in your ask. Request a 5 to 8% premium over suburban offers to offset the city's local tax on all earned income. The range for Clinical Research Coordinators in Philadelphia runs from $52,000 to $82,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
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