Career comparison
Astronomer vs. Data Scientist
Side-by-side pay, training, growth and day-to-day duties to help you choose between two related careers.
Astronomers earn more at the median ($128,820 vs. $120,230), while data scientists usually get to work faster (4–6 years of training). Astronomers study stars, planets and the universe using telescopes and data. Data scientists turn data into insights and predictions that guide decisions.
Pay data: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Outlook: BLS 2025–35 · Checked October 15, 2026
| Astronomer | Data Scientist | |
|---|---|---|
| Median pay | $128,820 ($61.94/hr) | $120,230 ($57.80/hr) |
| Pay range (10th–90th) | $78,010 – $195,190 | $67,240 – $199,130 |
| Job growth, 2025–35 | +7.8% (much faster than average) | +34.6% (much faster than average) |
| Openings per year | 100 | 24,800 |
| Typical entry education | Doctoral or professional degree | Bachelor's degree |
| Training time | 5–7 years after a bachelor’s plus postdocs | 4–6 years |
| Key credential | Ph.D. | Google Advanced Data Analytics Certificate |
| Work setting | Astronomers work at universities, observatories and space agencies.. | Data scientists work in offices or remotely at computers, collaborating with engineers, analysts and business teams.. |
What each job does
Astronomer
- Plan observations
- Analyze data
- Build models
- Write code
- Publish papers
Data Scientist
- Gather and clean data from many sources
- Explore data with statistics and visualizations
- Build predictive and machine learning models
- Design and analyze experiments
- Deploy and monitor models
How they’re similar
Both careers involve working with information, working independently, high-pay, and problem-solving. They sit in different fields, science, engineering & lab and technology, but share transferable skills such as curiosity and curiosity.
Which should you choose?
Choose astronomer if…
- I love space
- I like physics and math
- I can code
Choose data scientist if…
- I love working with numbers and data
- I enjoy statistics and coding
- I like finding patterns
Still torn? Take the Astronomer fit quiz and the Data Scientist fit quiz, or the full Career Match Quiz.
Quick comparisons
Which pays more, astronomer or data scientist?
Astronomers earn more at the median: $128,820 versus $120,230 for data scientists, based on BLS May 2025 data.
Which takes less time to train for?
Data Scientists typically train faster (4–6 years) than astronomers (5–7 years after a bachelor’s plus postdocs).
Which career has better job growth?
BLS projects data scientists to grow +34.6% from 2025–35, compared with +7.8% for astronomers.