The 2025 AquariumsHiring.com Jobs Report
Trends and Hiring Data from 508 Job Postings
Published by AquariumsHiring.com · Data period: January 1 – December 31, 2025
We tracked every job posted on AquariumsHiring.com in 2025. This report breaks down what we found: which states are hiring the most, what roles are in highest demand, and what aquariums are paying.
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Key Findings at a Glance
- We tracked 508 job postings across 73 aquariums and marine facilities in 2025.
- Aquarist / Animal Keeper roles were the most in-demand positions, with 126 postings in 2025.
- December saw the most job openings with 77 new postings.
- The majority of positions are full-time roles, with part-time opportunities offering flexible ways to gain experience and grow a career in the aquarium field.
- 301 of 508 postings (59%) included salary information, reflecting strong pay transparency across the industry.
- Advertised aquarist pay averaged $20.54/hr.
Hiring Volume & Seasonality
In 2025, AquariumsHiring.com tracked 508 job postings across the aquarium and marine industry. Hiring activity showed notable variation throughout the year, with clear seasonal patterns that job seekers and employers alike can use to their advantage.
December recorded the highest volume of tracked postings (77), capping a steady stream of openings throughout the year. Aquarium hiring runs year-round, with facilities recruiting permanent animal care, operations, and guest-experience staff in every month, alongside seasonal roles that support summer visitor programming.
Aquarium job postings by month, 2025
A note on coverage: these monthly figures reflect both real hiring activity and the growth of our coverage, which expanded over the course of 2025. Early-year totals under-represent actual postings, so the upward slope through the year overstates true seasonality. For comparison, our companion Zoos Hiring report shows the same pronounced December peak and a similar mid-year cadence, but with steady first-quarter hiring — reinforcing that the soft early-2025 aquarium figures reflect our tracking coverage rather than a real market lull. We expect 2026 to provide a cleaner full-year baseline for month-over-month comparison.
Most In-Demand Aquarium Roles
We categorized all 508 job postings into role categories based on title keywords. Note that some jobs may fall into multiple categories, and roles without clear keyword matches are not categorized below.
| Role Category | Postings | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Aquarist / Animal Keeper | 126 | 24.8% |
| Manager | 62 | 12.2% |
| Supervisor / Team Lead | 44 | 8.7% |
| Executive / Director / VP | 39 | 7.7% |
| Curator | 29 | 5.7% |
| Operations / Maintenance | 29 | 5.7% |
| Business & Administration | 28 | 5.5% |
| Veterinarian / Vet Tech | 27 | 5.3% |
| Biologist / Research / Conservation | 27 | 5.3% |
| Life Support / Water Quality | 22 | 4.3% |
| Guest Services / Events | 19 | 3.7% |
| Educator / Interpretation | 18 | 3.5% |
| Coordinator | 16 | 3.1% |
| Diver | 11 | 2.2% |
Role distribution
Leadership and organizational roles span multiple tiers: Executive / Director / VP (39), Managers (62), Supervisors / Team Leads (44), and Coordinators (16), totaling 161 postings across these categories. Aquarist / Animal Keeper, the most in-demand role in the field, came in with 126 postings.
Employment Type Overview
The vast majority of aquarium industry postings are full-time positions, spanning aquarists and animal care specialists, veterinarians and vet techs, curators and directors, life support and water quality technicians, divers, educators, and administrative professionals.
Where the Aquarium Jobs Are
In 2025, tracked aquarium job postings spanned 30+ states, led by Missouri (55), Utah (53), and Nebraska (48). The numbers here reflect postings tracked on AquariumsHiring.com during 2025. While our coverage grew throughout the year, these figures represent a sample of the market rather than a complete count, so state totals are best read as directional.
Top 15 states by job volume
| Rank | State | Jobs Posted |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Missouri | 55 |
| 2 | Utah | 53 |
| 3 | Nebraska | 48 |
| 4 | Illinois | 42 |
| 5 | California | 40 |
| 6 | Florida | 33 |
| 7 | Connecticut | 32 |
| 8 | Ohio | 26 |
| 9 | Massachusetts | 23 |
| 10 | Kentucky | 19 |
| 11 | Tennessee | 18 |
| 12 | Arizona | 17 |
| 13 | Louisiana | 16 |
| 14 | New York | 13 |
| 15 | Georgia | 11 |
No aquarium jobs were posted on AquariumsHiring.com in Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico during 2025.
Aquarium Salary Snapshot
We extracted salary information from 301 postings that included compensation data in their descriptions. The table below shows salary ranges by role category, normalized to annual figures (hourly rates converted at 2,080 hours/year).
| Role | Sample Size | Low End | High End | Avg. Midpoint |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aquarist / Animal Keeper | 69 | $30,680 | $70,782 | $43,194 |
| Manager | 44 | $36,791 | $180,960 | $75,088 |
| Executive / Director / VP | 27 | $62,000 | $280,000 | $129,711 |
| Curator | 19 | $34,936 | $100,000 | $67,479 |
| Supervisor / Team Lead | 18 | $35,360 | $119,000 | $55,670 |
| Business & Administration | 18 | $38,480 | $137,000 | $67,399 |
| Biologist / Research / Conservation | 17 | $31,200 | $119,000 | $57,230 |
| Life Support / Water Quality | 14 | $37,440 | $83,387 | $50,226 |
| Operations / Maintenance | 14 | $35,360 | $81,994 | $52,616 |
| Educator / Interpretation | 14 | $31,200 | $84,157 | $47,227 |
| Coordinator | 13 | $33,280 | $66,560 | $47,208 |
| Veterinarian / Vet Tech | 11 | $41,600 | $96,279 | $68,813 |
| Guest Services / Events | 9 | $35,360 | $63,000 | $51,478 |
| Diver | 5 | $33,280 | $52,000 | $45,392 |
Hourly rate samples
Of the 301 postings with salary data, 153 listed hourly rates. Hourly rates ranged from $8.50/hr to $40.09/hr.
| Role | Postings | Hourly Range | Avg. Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aquarist / Animal Keeper | 64 | $14.75 – $34.03 | $20.54 |
| Supervisor / Team Lead | 14 | $17.00 – $37.78 | $24.30 |
| Operations / Maintenance | 13 | $17.00 – $39.42 | $24.57 |
| Life Support / Water Quality | 11 | $18.00 – $40.09 | $23.28 |
| Educator / Interpretation | 9 | $15.00 – $23.00 | $18.77 |
| Coordinator | 7 | $16.00 – $32.00 | $21.96 |
| Biologist / Research / Conservation | 7 | $15.00 – $37.12 | $23.37 |
| Manager | 4 | $20.00 – $30.43 | $22.61 |
| Veterinarian / Vet Tech | 4 | $20.00 – $28.00 | $22.57 |
| Guest Services / Events | 4 | $17.00 – $30.00 | $21.25 |
| Business & Administration | 4 | $18.50 – $28.37 | $22.04 |
| Diver | 2 | $16.00 – $20.00 | $18.50 |
| Curator | 1 | $34.81 – $34.81 | $34.81 |
Note: Salary data is based on postings that included compensation information in their descriptions. Many postings do not list salary, so these figures represent a subset of the market. Actual compensation may vary based on experience, location, and institution type.
Methodology
This report is based on 508 job postings tracked on AquariumsHiring.com between January 1 and December 31, 2025, across 73 aquariums and marine facilities. Role categories are assigned by keyword matching on job titles, and some postings could reasonably fall into more than one category.
Salary figures are drawn from the 301 postings that stated compensation in the listing text. Hourly rates are annualized at 2,080 hours per year for comparison against salaried roles. Because many employers do not publish pay, these figures describe advertised compensation on this job board rather than the aquarium labor market as a whole. Our coverage expanded over the course of 2025, so monthly and state totals are best read as directional rather than as a complete census of the market.
Questions about the data: info@aquariumshiring.com
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