Quantitative Analyst Salary

Created by Henry Steele

By Henry Steele - January 8, 2018
Reading Time: 8 minutes
Reading Time: 8 minutes

The following article discusses the career path of a Quantitative Analyst. Learn about how to become one, education requirements, job duties, traits and qualities, national salary outlook as well as top national employers of Quantitative Analysts.

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Quantitative Analyst Job Duties

Quantitative analysts are responsible for the creation of a strategy that enable stock trades to be as efficient as possible. They work hand in hand with various mathematical professionals in an effort to improve existing trading strategies and protocols. They have a range of different skills, focusing on computers, finances, and mathematics, which they employ to maximize profit levels.

These professionals also create analytical models and edit them as and when needed. They join forces with other financial experts to come up with better tools to ensure stock and financial portfolios are maintained and improved on. They also report to the company and ensure the right software is in place. They have strong organizational and mathematical skills, therefore, and have a drive and passion for building better portfolios.

Other job duties of a quantitative analyst include:

  • Analyzing and researching available statistics of the market to create, validate, test, implement, evaluate, and maintain quantitative models and software programs
  • Perform default risk modeling, loan pricing, and risk analysis
  • Creating new experiments and tests in order to gather data
  • Consolidating, querying, and presenting findings to senior management
  • Developing new portfolios

Where Quantitative Analyst’s Work

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 296,100 financial analysts in 2016, a profession closely related to that of quantitative analysts. The largest employers of these professionals were:

  • Securities, commodity contracts, and other financial investments and related activities: 24%
  • Professional, scientific, and technical services: 14%
  • Credit intermediation and related activities: 13%
  • Management of companies and enterprises: 12%
  • Insurance carriers and related activities: 7%

How to Become a Quantitative Analyst

A quantitative analyst is expected to hold a bachelor’s degree in finance or related field, such as business, as a minimum. However, many also complete further education. Furthermore, work experience and proven success are of key importance.

Quantitative Analyst Education Requirements

A bachelor’s degree is generally the minimum requirement. While a bachelor’s degree in finance is recommended, fields such as mathematics, statistics, economics, and accounting are also suitable. Licenses and certifications are also available and sometimes required by employers.

The main licensing body for the securities industry is the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). If quantitative analysts wish to sell financial products, they will need to be licensed. To receive this license, employer sponsorship is required. This means that analysts are not expected to already be licensed when they start a job.

Certification is usually recommended depending on the position. The Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), offered by the CFA Institute, is very popular. To obtain CFA certification, a quantitative analyst must hold a bachelor’s degree, have four years of relevant professional experience, and pass three different examinations. They can also obtain further certification in specialty fields. Doing so will also greatly improve their advancement prospects.

Quantitative Analyst Traits & Qualities

The most effective quantitative analysts have the following traits to some degree or other:

  • Excellent analytical skills
  • Great communication skills, both verbal and written, particularly in relation to report writing and holding presentations
  • Computer skills, focusing on financial analysis software
  • Strong decision making skills
  • Detail oriented
  • Excellent mathematical skills

Minimum Quantitative Analyst Education

Bachelor’s Degree

National Quantitative Analyst Salary

The national average salary estimate for Quantitative Analyst was $127,870. This number is estimated from over 845,324 employees, users past and present job advertisements from Indeed.com. This equates to an hourly salary of $66.60 and monthly of $10,656.

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$38,000

$270,000

Salary Distribution

Quantitative Analyst Salary by State

The following section lists Quantitative Analyst salaries in each state around the country. The figures are based on the total number of job postings through Indeed.com. For example, Arkansas had the largest quoted salary of $164,510 while Oregon had the smallest quoted salary of $35,029.

AlaskaFloridaNevada
AlabamaGeorgiaNew York
ArkansasIllinoisOhio
ArizonaMassachusettsOregon
CaliforniaMarylandPennsylvania
ColoradoMinnesotaTennessee
ConnecticutMissouriTexas
DCNorth CarolinaVirginia
DelawareNew JerseyWashington
Alaska$96,985Rank: 19th
The average salary ranks 19th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like McKinley Capital Management, LLC.

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$48,000

$147,000

Salary Distribution
Alabama$131,532Rank: 6th
The average salary ranks 6th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Regions Bank, Accounting Career Network, and The Job Jobber.

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$44,000

$265,000

Salary Distribution
Arkansas$164,510Rank: 1st
The average salary ranks 1st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like The Job Jobber and Accounting Career Network.

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$82,000

$248,000

Salary Distribution
Arizona$153,773Rank: 3rd
The average salary ranks 3rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Accounting Career Network.

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$77,000

$256,000

Salary Distribution
California$119,011Rank: 12th
The average salary ranks 12th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like GQR Global Markets, Pacific Investment Management Company, Emerald Resource Group, and Selby Jennings.

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$35,000

$251,000

Salary Distribution
Colorado$148,046Rank: 4th
The average salary ranks 4th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Select Source International Pvt Ltd, Accounting Career Network, MashPoint, and Robert Half Technology.

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$63,000

$267,000

Salary Distribution
Connecticut$122,398Rank: 9th
The average salary ranks 9th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like UBS, Excel Partners, GQR Global Markets, and Brokerage Firm.

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$27,000

$287,000

Salary Distribution
DC$105,023Rank: 15th
The average salary ranks 15th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Selby Jennings.

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$34,000

$214,000

Salary Distribution
Delaware$97,566Rank: 18th
The average salary ranks 18th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Harnham and PNC Financial Services Group.

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$49,000

$148,000

Salary Distribution
Florida$82,469Rank: 25th
The average salary ranks 25th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like NextEra Energy.

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$22,000

$180,000

Salary Distribution
Georgia$127,745Rank: 7th
The average salary ranks 7th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like SunTrust, Bank Of America, Intercontinental Exchange, and Accounting Career Network.

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$41,000

$260,000

Salary Distribution
Illinois$110,292Rank: 13th
The average salary ranks 13th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Multi strategy hedge fund, GinasTechJobs.com, Gina’s Tech Jobs, and Citadel LLC.

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$33,000

$232,000

Salary Distribution
Massachusetts$119,076Rank: 11th
The average salary ranks 11th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like GQR Global Markets, Selby Jennings, Eka finance, and Fanning Personnel.

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$39,000

$242,000

Salary Distribution
Maryland$89,277Rank: 21st
The average salary ranks 21st among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Inovalon, Exelon Generation Company, LLC, and T. Rowe Price.

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$14,000

$236,000

Salary Distribution
Minnesota$84,421Rank: 24th
The average salary ranks 24th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Finance & Accounting and U.S. Bank National Association.

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$24,000

$180,000

Salary Distribution
Missouri$85,419Rank: 23rd
The average salary ranks 23rd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Sanford Rose Associates – Wayne.

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$21,000

$192,000

Salary Distribution
North Carolina$119,443Rank: 10th
The average salary ranks 10th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Bank Of America, BB&T, Fuzzy Logix, LLC, and All-In Analytics.

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$41,000

$237,000

Salary Distribution
New Jersey$97,980Rank: 17th
The average salary ranks 17th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like KCG Americas LLC.

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$26,000

$216,000

Salary Distribution
Nevada$74,284Rank: 26th
The average salary ranks 26th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Robert Half Technology.

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$26,000

$146,000

Salary Distribution
New York$142,022Rank: 5th
The average salary ranks 5th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Stratactico, Integrated Management Resources, LLC, JMD Partners, and Averity.

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$46,000

$289,000

Salary Distribution
Ohio$86,622Rank: 22nd
The average salary ranks 22nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like PNC Financial Services Group, KeyBank, Queen Associates, and Emerald Resource Group.

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$24,000

$187,000

Salary Distribution
Oregon$35,029Rank: 27th
The average salary ranks 27th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Spalding Goobey.

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$14,000

$72,000

Salary Distribution
Pennsylvania$107,262Rank: 14th
The average salary ranks 14th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like PNC Financial Services Group, BNY Mellon, Averity, and FusionFind.

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$21,000

$261,000

Salary Distribution
Tennessee$162,258Rank: 2nd
The average salary ranks 2nd among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Accounting Career Network.

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$81,000

$246,000

Salary Distribution
Texas$126,446Rank: 8th
The average salary ranks 8th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Workway, Accounting Career Network, Emerald Resource Group, and Selby Jennings.

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$44,000

$250,000

Salary Distribution
Virginia$90,529Rank: 20th
The average salary ranks 20th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like CyberCoders and Capital One.

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$40,000

$161,000

Salary Distribution
Washington$103,898Rank: 16th
The average salary ranks 16th among states in the country. There were also job openings from employers like Huxley Banking & Financial Services.

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$33,000

$214,000

Salary Distribution

Top 20 National Quantitative Analyst Employers

According to Indeed.com, the following states had employers looking to hire a Quantitative Analyst. The quoted salary figure represents the average salary from all job postings by this employer.

Employer NameLocationAverage Salary

Quantitative Analyst Learn More

Related Quantitative Analyst Careers

Career NameAverage Salary

Henry Steele
Managing Editor
Henry is Managing Editor of BusinessStudent.com. He is a seasoned business professional who regularly consults with local business's throughout Southern California. Henry pursued his undergrad in Business and Economics at the University of San Diego and gained valuable life changing experience through a unique internship upon graduation.

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