2027 Salary Guide · Engineering
In May 2025 the median electrical engineer earned $120,630, BLS reports; two more years of 3.1% wage growth puts that at about $128,000 for 2027. No single industry dominates hiring: engineering services firms employ 22% of electrical engineers, power utilities 10%, and research labs, instrument makers and aerospace manufacturers about 5% each.
Who hires
BLS reports these as the largest employers of electrical engineers. The same degree leads to very different daily work in each.
Consulting and design firms that engineer power distribution, lighting and controls for buildings, plants and infrastructure.
Utilities and power producers. Work covers substations, protection, interconnection and grid planning, including connecting renewable generation.
Labs in the physical, engineering and life sciences. These roles more often ask for graduate degrees and focus on prototypes and testing.
Makers of navigational, measuring, electromedical and control instruments. Product design, test and compliance work.
Avionics, power systems and wiring for aircraft and spacecraft. Defense programs may require a security clearance.
Local pay
The San Francisco Bay Area ($166,030) and Austin ($145,360) have the highest medians among the metros we track, and Austin has about two and a half times the national concentration of electrical engineers. Los Angeles is the largest market at 8,970 jobs. Only 13 of the 28 metros with published data beat the national median; BLS does not publish an Atlanta estimate.
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Bay Area | $166,030 +38% | $97,500 – $219,070 | 2,470 |
| Austin | $145,360 +21% | $81,960 – $212,900 | 4,070 |
| Seattle | $140,210 +16% | $98,130 – $202,430 | 4,930 |
| Los Angeles | $139,780 +16% | $79,230 – $209,460 | 8,970 |
| Houston | $131,070 +9% | $77,170 – $207,990 | 5,770 |
| Raleigh | $130,240 +8% | $73,380 – $221,050 | 1,500 |
| Boston | $128,610 +7% | $78,800 – $176,470 | 4,030 |
| New York City | $128,340 +6% | $81,440 – $171,030 | 6,290 |
| Portland | $128,080 +6% | $84,250 – $164,720 | 2,320 |
| Philadelphia | $127,730 +6% | $81,380 – $180,390 | 3,520 |
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego | $127,270 +6% | $80,080 – $204,610 | 2,400 |
| Washington, DC | $126,420 +5% | $84,820 – $195,190 | 4,450 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $124,390 +3% | $76,720 – $205,040 | 5,720 |
| Denver | $119,020 -1% | $80,350 – $196,110 | 2,620 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | $117,230 -3% | $82,080 – $168,280 | 2,410 |
| Baltimore | $116,650 -3% | $66,630 – $203,210 | 2,770 |
| Providence | $114,710 -5% | $78,000 – $197,950 | 830 |
| Detroit | $114,390 -5% | $80,610 – $160,110 | 6,060 |
| Chicago | $113,520 -6% | $76,660 – $165,890 | 4,290 |
| Hartford | $106,760 -11% | $80,170 – $157,640 | 990 |
| Albany | $105,910 -12% | $70,890 – $170,020 | 720 |
| Pittsburgh | $104,990 -13% | $78,120 – $157,400 | 1,630 |
| Charlotte | $103,360 -14% | $65,140 – $213,210 | 1,770 |
| Miami | $102,800 -15% | $65,660 – $163,750 | 2,050 |
| Tampa | $102,110 -15% | $64,370 – $162,490 | 1,500 |
| Nashville | $99,790 -17% | $72,910 – $166,720 | 690 |
| Phoenix | $99,160 -18% | $75,560 – $165,520 | 3,420 |
| Buffalo | $98,180 -19% | $65,800 – $152,500 | 550 |
BLS metro estimates, May 2025. Percent compares the metro median with the national median. "Jobs" is BLS estimated employment in the metro; blank where BLS does not publish it.
Career path
BLS does not publish pay by experience or license status. These stages map the usual licensing path onto the national percentiles as a planning guide.
About $76,550 to $92,830 (10th to 25th percentile)
BLS says electrical engineers typically need at least a bachelor's degree, and licensure is not required at entry level. Many new graduates take the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam early, while coursework is fresh.
About $92,830 to $152,950 (25th to 75th percentile)
Owns designs, calculations and specifications for a system or product. With enough supervised experience, engineers can sit for the Professional Engineer (PE) exam.
About $152,950 to $184,300+ (75th to 90th percentile)
Leads projects or teams, signs off on designs, or specializes in high-demand areas. In the Bay Area and Seattle the 90th percentile tops $200,000.
Pay distribution
Half of electrical engineers earned between $92,830 and $152,950 in May 2025. The top tenth earned more than $184,300, about $107,750 above the bottom tenth.
Typical for the Electrical Engineer title: $92,830 to $152,950 (25th to 75th percentile of Electrical Engineers)
| Percentile | BLS, May 2025 | 2027 planning estimate |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $76,550 | $81,500 |
| 25th percentile | $92,830 | $98,500 |
| Median | $120,630 | $128,000 |
| 75th percentile | $152,950 | $162,500 |
| 90th percentile | $184,300 | $196,000 |
Outlook
BLS expects much faster than average growth through 2035 and about 11,400 openings a year, from a base of 199,700 electrical engineers.
BLS Employment Projections via O*NET OnLine. Projections cover Electrical Engineers as a whole.
About the data
BLS reports Electrical Engineers (SOC 17-2071) separately from Electronics Engineers, Except Computer. Circuit, power, controls and electrical design engineers fall in this occupation; O*NET's sample titles include Circuits Engineer, Electrical Controls Engineer, Electrical Design Engineer and Test Engineer.
The pay figures are straight-time wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey. They leave out overtime and year-end bonuses, and they do not include self-employed consultants.
Compare
Electrical engineers earn about $16,520 more than mechanical engineers at the median and about $14,330 less than aerospace engineers. Controls engineers are benchmarked on the same BLS occupation, so their figures match.
| Role | BLS median | 2027 estimate | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical Engineer | $120,630 | $128,000 | Much faster than average |
| Controls Engineer | $120,630 | $128,000 | Much faster than average |
| Mechanical Engineer | $104,110 | $110,500 | Much faster than average |
| Aerospace Engineer | $134,960 | $143,500 | Much faster than average |
| Electrician | $63,190 | $67,000 | Much faster than average |
FAQ
The BLS median for electrical engineers was $120,630 in May 2025, or $58.00 an hour. The middle half earned between $92,830 and $152,950, and the top tenth more than $184,300. Carried forward at 3.1% a year, the 2027 planning median is about $128,000.
Electrical engineering graduates' first offers are not a BLS series. The 10th percentile for electrical engineers was $76,550 and the 25th percentile $92,830 in May 2025, reasonable markers for first offers. In the Bay Area and Seattle, even the 10th percentile was above $97,000.
BLS does not report pay by license status. The license matters most where engineers sign and seal designs, such as building and power distribution work at engineering services firms. BLS lists the path as passing the Fundamentals of Engineering exam, gaining experience and passing the PE exam; licensure is not required for entry-level jobs.
Among the 29 metros in this guide, the San Francisco Bay Area had the highest median at $166,030 in May 2025, followed by Austin at $145,360, Seattle at $140,210 and Los Angeles at $139,780. Buffalo had the lowest published median at $98,180.
No, they are counted elsewhere. BLS counts Electronics Engineers, Except Computer as a separate occupation, so this page covers electrical engineers only: power, circuits, controls and electrical design. Controls engineers have their own page in this guide, benchmarked on the same electrical engineer figures.
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