New Orleans-Metairie, LA · CBSA 35380
Petroleum Engineer Salary in New Orleans
VerifiedPublished metro-area wages for petroleum engineers in New Orleans-Metairie, LA, from the BLS OEWS May 2024 release — with the local distribution set against Louisiana and the national benchmark.
Petroleum Engineers in New Orleans earn a median of $143,400 per year, per BLS OEWS May 2024. The middle 50% earn $123,720–$172,570; the top 10% earn $228,980. That is 2% above the national median and 7% above the Louisiana median. BLS reports 360 employed locally.
Median wage
Verified$143,400
+2% vs national
Top 10% earn
$228,980
90th percentile
Employed in metro
360
Reliability Good (5.3% RSE)
Petroleum Engineer pay — New Orleans vs Louisiana vs national
All three distributions are published BLS percentiles on a single shared scale.
| Percentile | Annual wage | vs national |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentileentry / low | $69,280 | -12% |
| 25th percentile | $123,720 | +15% |
| Median50th percentile | $143,400 | +2% |
| 75th percentile | $172,570 | -10% |
| 90th percentiletop earners | $228,980 | — |
| Meanaverage | $151,350 | -1% |
How concentrated petroleum engineers are in New Orleans
Location quotient compares local concentration to the national rate. Above 1.00 means this metro employs the occupation more densely than the country overall.
Location quotient
6.65
Jobs per 1,000
0.82
Metro rank (pay)
#17 of 38
All engineering roles
$117,046
At a location quotient of 6.65, New Orleans is a genuine hub for this discipline — the occupation is roughly 6.7× as concentrated here as nationally, which usually means deeper employer competition and more lateral options.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a petroleum engineer make in New Orleans?
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Where does New Orleans rank nationally for petroleum engineers?
Source details
Published wage from BLS OEWS May 2024 for SOC 17-2171 (Petroleum Engineers), New Orleans-Metairie, LA (metro area).
Benchmarks come from published government wage data via BLS OEWS. Local and emerging-role figures are labeled estimates. Full methodology →