LegalBLS OES100/100 · Grade A+BLS.OEWS.2026.v2

Intellectual Property Attorney Salary in Philadelphia, PA

2026 · BLS OEWS · 1.1M employer payroll records · Updated daily

Median salary
$216,527
per year
P75 target
$283,529
negotiation anchor
Hourly rate
$104/hr
2,080 hr/yr baseline
+9%
vs US avg
+10%
demand growth
Low
AI risk

Salary Distribution — Philadelphia

P10Entry Level
$129,660

New graduates, 0–1 yr exp

P2525th Percentile
$165,358

1–3 years experience

P50Median
$216,527

3–7 years, typical professional

P7575th Percentile
$283,529

Senior / high-performer — target

P90Top 10%
$361,592

Staff / principal / lead

Data Confidence
100/100A+
Government earnings data30/30

Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS federal authority

BLS Spring 2026 release40/40

1mo since last update

Multi-city cross-validation16/16

8 cities validated

Full percentile coverage14/14

P10, P25, P50, P75, P90 + hourly rate

BLS.OEWS.2026.v2Updated Jun 12, 2026

Intellectual Property Attorney Salary by Experience Level in Philadelphia

How compensation grows from entry-level through staff / lead

Experience LevelYearsPercentileAnnual SalaryMonthlyHourly
Entry00 yrs$125,586$10,466$60
Junior22 yrs$168,891$14,074$81
Mid-LevelTypical44 yrs$200,648$16,721$96
Senior66 yrs$246,841$20,570$119
Staff1010 yrs$368,096$30,675$177
Principal1414 yrs$506,673$42,223$244
Distinguished1818 yrs$541,318$45,110$260

Based on BLS OEWS percentile distribution. Actual salary depends on employer, skills, and negotiation.

Skills That Earn More — Intellectual Property Attorney

Estimated premium above the Philadelphia median based on market demand

Patent Law+4% ≈ +$9K/yr
Trademark+4% ≈ +$9K/yr
IP Litigation+4% ≈ +$9K/yr
USPTO+4% ≈ +$9K/yr
Technology Law+4% ≈ +$9K/yr

Estimates based on job-posting salary premiums for verified high-demand skills.

Top Skills Market Premium

Real premium data from LinkedIn, StackOverflow & Levels.fyi job postings

All-skills combined premium
+$43K/yr
Highest single skill
Patent Law +4%
Patent Law+4% · +$9K/yr
Trademark+4% · +$9K/yr
IP Litigation+4% · +$9K/yr
USPTO+4% · +$9K/yr
Technology Law+4% · +$9K/yr

Premiums represent verified market uplift for each skill based on job posting analysis. Adding the top-3 skills compounds — but employers rarely pay all premiums simultaneously.

Intellectual Property Attorney Intelligence Report

Composite career metrics and full compensation breakdown — computed from BLS demand data

Career Opportunity Score

Composite: demand growth × 1.4 + (100 − AI risk) × 0.4

D46/100
High RiskModerateExceptional
Demand Growth+10%/yr
AI Displacement Risk20% — Low
Risk-Adj. Salary Growth+1.5%/yr
Below Average: Moderate risk from automation. Consider adjacent skills to broaden earning power.
$223K
In 2 yrs
$233K
In 5 yrs
$251K
In 10 yrs

Risk-adjusted growth model. Not financial advice.

Total Compensation — Intellectual Property Attorney

Beyond base salary: bonus, equity, and employer-provided benefits

Total Comp Range
$297K$362K
per year
Base (66%)Bonus (16%)Equity (3%)Benefits (14%)
Base Salary
Median market rate
$216,527
Annual Bonus
Typical range: 10–40% of base
$54,132
Equity (annualised)
~5% of base — RSUs/options
$10,826
Benefits Value
~22% — healthcare, 401k, PTO
$47,636
Total Comp (mid)
$329,121

Sources: Levels.fyi TC data, LinkedIn Salary Insights, Robert Half 2025 Guide. Equity assumes established company RSU vesting schedule.

Typical Benefits for Intellectual Property Attorneys

Total compensation beyond base salary — often adds 20–35% to your effective pay

Health Insurance
Medical, dental, vision
401(k) Match
Avg 3–6% employer match
PTO
15–25 days / year
Remote / Hybrid
Common in this role
Total compensation tip: Always negotiate base salary first. Equity, signing bonus, and remote flexibility have the highest negotiation leverage in the current market.

Compare Intellectual Property Attorney Salaries by City

How Philadelphia, PA stacks up against other major markets

CityMedianP75vs US avg
Philadelphia, PA (current)$216,527$283,529++9%
New York, NY$284,840$372,981++43%
San Francisco, CA$331,699$434,340++66%
Seattle, WA$290,345$380,190++46%
Austin, TX$229,575$300,615++15%
Boston, MA$282,868$370,399++42%
Chicago, IL$229,797$300,906++15%
Los Angeles, CA$269,469$352,854++35%
Denver, CO$223,650$292,856++12%

Career Paths from Intellectual Property Attorney

O*NET · US Dept of Labor

Higher-paying roles in the same field

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average Intellectual Property Attorney salary in Philadelphia, PA?

The median Intellectual Property Attorney salary in Philadelphia, PA is $217K per year (2026), based on BLS OEWS employer payroll data from 1.1 million employers. The top 25% earn $284K+ per year.

What is a good Intellectual Property Attorney salary in Philadelphia, PA?

The 75th percentile ($284K/yr) is the professional benchmark — what the top quarter already earns. It's a documented, negotiable target backed by BLS payroll data. Anything above the median ($217K) is above-average for this role in Philadelphia, PA.

How much does a Intellectual Property Attorney earn per hour in Philadelphia, PA?

Based on the median annual salary of $217K, a Intellectual Property Attorney in Philadelphia, PA earns approximately $104/hr (2,080-hour work year). The P75 rate is ~$136/hr.

Is Philadelphia, PA a good market for Intellectual Property Attorneys?

Philadelphia, PA pays 9% above the US national average for this role. Demand for Intellectual Property Attorneys is growing 10% annually, and AI automation risk is rated low for this occupation.

How do I negotiate a higher Intellectual Property Attorney salary in Philadelphia, PA?

Cite the BLS P75 figure ($284K) — it is verifiable public data from government payroll records. Request the full compensation package: base + equity/bonus + benefits. Timing matters: negotiate at the offer stage, not after acceptance. Counter with a specific number, not a range.

How Is This Salary Calculated?

Every number on this page is derived from a transparent, reproducible methodology — no estimates, no black boxes.

Where does the salary data come from?

All US figures come from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey — a mandatory biannual survey of 1.1 million US employers who report actual payroll data. The BLS publishes national, state, and metro-area percentile wages for every Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code. SalaryScope fetches this via the BLS public API and refreshes every 24 hours. No self-reported data is used at any stage.

How is the Philadelphia figure calculated?

The BLS publishes metro-area occupational wage statistics for 300+ US metropolitan areas. For Philadelphia, SalaryScope uses the BLS metro premium ratio (metro median ÷ national median) and applies it to the national baseline. This ratio accounts for local employer density, cost-of-living, and industry concentration. The figures are updated whenever the BLS releases new OEWS metro data.

What do P10, P25, P50, P75, and P90 mean?

These are salary percentiles from employer payroll records. P50 (median) means 50% of workers earn less — this is the market midpoint. P75 means 75% of workers earn less — this is the "top 25% earners" threshold and is the recommended negotiation anchor. P10 and P90 represent the bottom 10% and top 10% of earners respectively. All figures are annual and based on 2,080 working hours per year (52 × 40hrs).

How is total compensation (bonus + equity) estimated?

Total comp is estimated using industry-specific compensation models calibrated to publicly available surveys (LinkedIn Salary, Radford, Levels.fyi). Bonus percentages are set by category: Finance (15–25%), Technology (10–20%), Healthcare (5–10%). Equity/RSUs are annualised over a standard 4-year cliff vest. Benefits value ($15K–$25K) reflects average employer-paid health, retirement match, and PTO. These are estimates — your actual comp depends on employer, level, and negotiation.

How often is data updated?

US BLS salary data refreshes every 24 hours via the BLS public API. OECD international wages refresh monthly. ECB currency rates refresh every 4 hours. The timestamp shown on each page reflects the most recent BLS data pull for that occupation.

Full formulas and source citations on the methodology page.

How much of $216,527 do you actually take home?

Calculate exact net pay after federal, state, and FICA taxes — 2026 brackets.

Salary trend data not available for this occupation.

Education Premium — Intellectual Property Attorney

How degree level affects Intellectual Property Attorney salary · ACS Census data

High School / GED
-65%
~$76K
Associate's Degree
-42%
~$126K
Bachelor's DegreeBASELINE
~$217K
Master's Degree
+6%
~$230K
Doctoral (PhD)
+14%
~$247K
Professional (MBA/JD/MD)
+92%
~$416K

Source: US Census Bureau ACS PUMS Table B20004 · BLS OES wage data. Premiums shown vs bachelor's degree baseline at median experience.

Am I Paid Fairly?

Enter your current salary to instantly see where you rank in the Philadelphia market and get your data-backed negotiation opening ask.

📊Your exact market percentile based on BLS distribution
🎯P75 target + 10% stretch as your opening ask price
🚪Walking-away floor so you know when to move on
Philadelphia benchmarks
$217K
Market median
$284K
P75 target
$362K
Top 10%

Negotiation Calculator

Enter your current salary to see your market position and opening ask

$
Intellectual Property Attorney in Philadelphia — Distribution
P10
$130K
P25
$165K
P50
$217K
P75
$284K
P90
$362K
Enter your salary above to see your negotiation position

Data Source & Attribution

Salary data sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, based on 1.1 million employer payroll records. Data is updated via ISR (Incremental Static Regeneration) and reflects the most recent BLS OEWS release cycle. This data is in the public domain under BLS data dissemination policy.

BLS.OEWS.2026.v2

Jun 12, 2026

Full methodology →