Is Lawrence Berkeley Lab a good company to work for?

Lawrence Berkeley Lab has an overall rating of 4.3 out of 5, based on over 1,340 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months. 83% of employees would recommend working at Lawrence Berkeley Lab to a friend and 76% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Lawrence Berkeley Lab have been left by employees working as Research Intern , Intern and Student Assistant .

Does Lawrence Berkeley Lab pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Lawrence Berkeley Lab employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.6 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Lawrence Berkeley Lab. This rating has improved by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Lawrence Berkeley Lab?

83% of Lawrence Berkeley Lab employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Lawrence Berkeley Lab 4.3 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.2 for culture and values and 3.7 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Lawrence Berkeley Lab?

Postdoctoral Fellow (133) , Postdoctoral Researcher (57) , Student Assistant (41) , Research Associate (36) , Research Assistant (34) , Research Scientist (33) , Intern (24) , Postdoctoral Scholar (22) , Project Scientist (21) , Graduate Research Assistant (14) , Scientific Engineering Associate (14) , Postdoctoral Research Associate (13) , Undergraduate Research Assistant (12) , Research Affiliate (11) , Research Intern (11)

What are the pros of working at Lawrence Berkeley Lab according to real employee reviews?

"Great people to work with" ((in 119 reviews)); "great benefits (postdocs joined UC postdocs union)" ((in 100 reviews)); "The people: My colleagues and my group are great people." ((in 36 reviews)); "Work life balance is good" ((in 26 reviews)); "Great work environment and colleagues" ((in 25 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Lawrence Berkeley Lab according to real employee reviews?

"salary is low for the cost of living in the Bay Area and in comparison to other national labs" ((in 90 reviews)); "Same as all grad student research positions… low pay" ((in 60 reviews)); "Limited parking spots are available on site." ((in 32 reviews)); "Poor management and often" ((in 23 reviews)); "Poor leadership and oversight" ((in 6 reviews))

What are employees saying about Lawrence Berkeley Lab layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Lawrence Berkeley Lab layoffs and their outlook for job security at Lawrence Berkeley Lab in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Lawrence Berkeley Lab locations?

Berkeley , Emeryville , UC Berkeley , San Francisco , Hayward , Oakland , Columbia , Buffalo , Massapequa , New York , Rochester , Tucson , Santa Fe , Dallas , Houston , Lebanon , California City , Los Angeles , Riverside , San Diego , Dublin , Fremont , Richmond , San Bruno , San Lorenzo , Union City , Palo Alto , San Jose , Sunnyvale , San Luis Obispo

Lawrence Berkeley Lab reviews

4.3

83% would recommend to a friend

(1,077 total reviews)

Michael Witherell

87% approve of CEO

76% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (1,077 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Lawrence Berkeley Lab has an employee rating of 4.3 out of 5 stars, based on 1,077 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The Lawrence Berkeley Lab employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Management & Consulting industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

1K reviews

4.0

Jul 1, 2021

Nice international environment, low salary

Postdoctoral researcher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Internationally renowned, funding availability, Administrative support for international researchers

Cons

Bureaucracy, Low postdoc salary for the Bay Area

4.0

Jun 29, 2021

Great felllow reseachers, intense bureaucracy

Postdoctoral researcher

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The number of other extremely skilled and knowledgeable researchers at Berkeley Lab is a huge asset for collaboration, learning and productivity.

Cons

The bureaucracy, both through the UC system management and federal rules, is thick. During the pandemic, the UC system initially threatened that anyone working remotely from abroad after January 1, 2021 would be considered as voluntarily resigning their job, apparently for tax reasons. Of course, the first email of the year from the lab director had the subject line "Your Safety Is Our Top Priority". Apparently bureaucratic considerations were slightly higher on the priority list.

4.0

Jun 27, 2021