Business by LA Times Studios presents a list of Southern California life science firms ranked by the number of employees in Southern California, including Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and San Diego counties. Life science companies span a diverse group of companies that include biotech, pharmaceutical developers, medical device manufacturers, contract research and manufacturing companies and diagnostic firms. Data for the list was provided by representatives of the companies themselves.
Thousand Oaks-based biotech giant Amgen is the largest company by employee head- count in Southern California with 5,500 employees who work at its campus. In 2024, its total revenue was $33.4 billion, up 19% from the prior year. The global biotech giant has 14 products on the market that generate at least $1 billion in sales annually. Its total research and development budget was $6 billion last year, and it has numerous medicines in the pipeline to treat obesity and obesity-related conditions, cancer, heart disease and other illnesses.
Overall, the 25 largest life science employers in Southern California have more than 28,000 employees combined.
