Does Smithsonian pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Smithsonian employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.7 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Smithsonian. This rating has improved by 4% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Smithsonian?

62% of Smithsonian employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Smithsonian 4.1 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.0 for culture and values and 3.4 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Smithsonian?

Intern (56) , Internship (13) , Explainer (10) , Retail Sales Associate (9) , Sales Associate (9) , Contractor (8) , Postdoctoral Fellow (8) , Research Assistant (8) , Museum Specialist (7) , Program Coordinator (7) , Security Officer (7) , Archivist (6) , Curator (6) , Education Specialist (6) , Program Assistant (6)

What are the pros of working at Smithsonian according to real employee reviews?

"And you will meet so many great people (tourist) from all over the world." ((in 68 reviews)); "Good benefits and bear transit" ((in 33 reviews)); "Great staff I enjoyed my time there." ((in 19 reviews)); "Great coworkers and behind the scenes access to museum collections" ((in 18 reviews)); "Amazing opportunities to work on global projects and collaborate with internationally celebrated artists and scholars." ((in 15 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Smithsonian according to real employee reviews?

"Pay is low but definitely no lower than industry standards." ((in 29 reviews)); "Lack of leadership and hard to fire" ((in 14 reviews)); "Low salary for DC metropolitan area" ((in 12 reviews)); "Unpaid internship where I was doing some of the same work that paid employees were doing." ((in 12 reviews)); "Long hours and very administrative at times" ((in 9 reviews))

Skip to content Skip to footer

Notifications

Smithsonian

Smithsonian Reviews

Compare reviews

4.0

62% would recommend to a friend

(506 total reviews)

Dr. David J. Skorton

75% approve of CEO

57% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.3

Diversity and inclusion

4.1

Work/Life balance

4.0

Culture and values

3.7

Compensation and benefits

3.4

Senior management

3.4

Career opportunities

Smithsonian has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 506 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Smithsonian employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Non-profit and NGO industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

506 reviews

5.0

13 Aug 2025

For a technical or development task

Full stack developer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Reviews offer insights into company culture, management style, work-life balance, and career growth opportunities

Cons

Reviews may be overly positive (e.g., written at HR’s request) or overly negative (e.g., written by disgruntled ex-employees), skewing the real picture

5.0

4 Apr 2022

One of the best places I've worked at

Explainer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Good group of workers, interesting work, flexible hours, somewhat flexible work, most visitors are great

Cons

Occasional creepy or rude visitor, on your feet a lot, PACs, can be issues with communication with higher ups

4.0

24 Mar 2021

Not interested

Business analyst

Recommend

CEO approval

Business outlook

Pros

Good place to work and learn

Cons

Nothing much to discuss about

Viewing 1 - 3 of 506 Reviews

Jobs at Smithsonian

Physical Security Specialist (Driver), IS-0080-09

Physical Security Specialist (Driver), IS-0080-09

Marketing & Membership Assistant, IS-1101-07

Budget Analyst, IS-0560-12