Top engineering pay
Highest-paid engineering jobs
VerifiedUpdated March 2025
Engineering occupations ranked by national median pay. Newer roles like AI and ML can pay more but are estimates, shown separately.
Top median
$167,740
Engineering Manager
Top 90th pct
$239,200
Engineering Manager
U.S. engineer median
$120,395
all disciplines
Benchmark roles
13
national benchmarks
The highest-paid engineering occupation by national median wage is Engineering Manager at $167,740, followed by petroleum, aerospace, and nuclear engineering. Top earners (90th percentile) reach $239,200 in engineering manager. These are verified national benchmarks. Newer roles like AI and machine-learning engineering can pay more but are estimates, shown separately below.
Ranked by median pay
National median pay for each engineering occupation.
| # | Engineering role | Median | Top earners |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Engineering Manager | $167,740 | $239,200 |
| 2 | Petroleum Engineer | $141,280 | $228,790 |
| 3 | Aerospace Engineer | $134,830 | $205,850 |
| 4 | Software Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 |
| 5 | Nuclear Engineer | $127,520 | $187,430 |
| 6 | Chemical Engineer | $121,860 | $182,150 |
| 7 | Electrical Engineer | $111,910 | $175,460 |
| 8 | Materials Engineer | $108,310 | $172,000 |
| 9 | Biomedical Engineer | $106,950 | $165,060 |
| 10 | Environmental Engineer | $104,170 | $161,910 |
| 11 | Mechanical Engineer | $102,320 | $161,240 |
| 12 | Industrial Engineer | $101,140 | $157,140 |
| 13 | Civil Engineer | $99,590 | $160,990 |
Emerging & specialized roles
Newer titles aren't tracked as their own category yet, so each is mapped to the closest established role and labeled an estimate — separate from the ranking above.
| Role | Est. median | Est. 90th | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior Engineer | $153,216 | $190,407 | Mapped est. |
| Data Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 | Mapped est. |
| AI Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 | Mapped est. |
| Machine Learning Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 | Mapped est. |
| Cloud Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 | Mapped est. |
| DevOps Engineer | $133,080 | $211,450 | Mapped est. |
| Systems Engineer | $117,750 | $183,510 | Mapped est. |
| Robotics Engineer | $117,750 | $183,510 | Mapped est. |
| Entry-Level Engineer | $93,901 | $120,395 | Mapped est. |
Source details
Published wage from BLS OEWS May 2024 for SOC 11-9041 (Architectural and Engineering Managers), national. Roles are ranked by national median annual pay. The top-earners column shows the 90th percentile. Emerging roles are estimates and excluded from the ranking.
Benchmarks come from published government wage data via BLS OEWS. Local and emerging-role figures are labeled estimates. Full methodology →