2027 Salary Guide · Engineering
The May 2025 BLS median for industrial engineers was $102,440, and about $109,000 is a fair 2027 planning number. The bottom of the range is high: the 10th percentile earned $74,370, only about $28,070 below the median, while the top tenth earned more than $159,860.
Before you compare offers
Industrial engineering jobs share a code but not a pay level. These questions sort them quickly.
Time studies and layout work on a single line pay differently from owning a plant's continuous improvement program or a network of warehouses.
BLS says transportation equipment manufacturing employs the largest share of industrial engineers (15%), followed by professional, scientific and technical services (14%) and computer and electronic products (11%).
O*NET lists Minitab, MATLAB, SQL and simulation software among industrial engineers' tools. Ask whether the role is mainly analysis and simulation or mainly floor support; the two are often leveled differently.
Medians run from $98,190 in Pittsburgh to $132,230 in the Bay Area among the metros we track. Check the city table before comparing a relocation offer.
Pay distribution
The bottom half of the range is compressed into about $28,000, while the distance from the median to the 90th percentile is about $57,420. Moving into the upper half usually comes with broader scope, such as running a plant's improvement program or a supply chain.
Typical for the Industrial Engineer title: $83,600 to $129,250 (25th to 75th percentile of Industrial Engineers)
| Percentile | BLS, May 2025 | 2027 planning estimate |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $74,370 | $79,000 |
| 25th percentile | $83,600 | $89,000 |
| Median | $102,440 | $109,000 |
| 75th percentile | $129,250 | $137,500 |
| 90th percentile | $159,860 | $170,000 |
Titles
O*NET's reported job titles for Industrial Engineers include Continuous Improvement Engineer, Facilities Engineer, Operations Engineer, Plant Engineer, Process Engineer, Quality Engineer and Project Engineer. This guide also benchmarks manufacturing and quality engineers on this code.
Removing waste, setting labor standards and running improvement projects.
Statistical analysis of product specifications and test data to set quality and reliability objectives, and corrective action when parts fail.
Sequencing operations, laying out equipment and workspace, and estimating the cost effect of design changes.
Distribution networks, warehouses and scheduling. O*NET lists Logistics Engineer as a registered apprenticeship title for the occupation.
Local pay
Detroit (17,350 jobs) and Minneapolis-St. Paul (13,970) are the largest markets in this guide, with about three to four times the national concentration, and both medians sit near $104,000. The San Francisco Bay Area ($132,230), Seattle ($131,210) and Portland ($129,890) pay the most. The full spread is narrow: Pittsburgh, the lowest, is only about $34,040 below the Bay Area.
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Bay Area | $132,230 +29% | $90,240 – $198,560 | 5,470 |
| Seattle | $131,210 +28% | $88,820 – $178,710 | 4,590 |
| Portland | $129,890 +27% | $85,020 – $205,270 | 5,230 |
| Baltimore | $119,990 +17% | $80,650 – $168,100 | 2,110 |
| San Diego | $119,050 +16% | $73,530 – $166,120 | 3,990 |
| Boston | $118,970 +16% | $82,600 – $163,010 | 9,010 |
| Washington, DC | $117,600 +15% | $82,140 – $173,400 | 2,000 |
| Los Angeles | $113,040 +10% | $78,320 – $166,090 | 11,460 |
| Houston | $111,690 +9% | $73,840 – $174,320 | 8,620 |
| Phoenix | $109,020 +6% | $79,740 – $171,390 | 5,810 |
| Metro area | Median | 10th – 90th | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver | $108,680 +6% | $80,810 – $157,780 | 2,500 |
| Providence | $106,290 +4% | $78,150 – $156,730 | 1,570 |
| New York City | $105,840 +3% | $78,270 – $162,390 | 8,540 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $105,640 +3% | $77,640 – $166,050 | 10,680 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul | $104,730 +2% | $78,730 – $161,020 | 13,970 |
| Albany | $104,170 +2% | $82,410 – $160,710 | 1,570 |
| Detroit | $104,110 +2% | $78,860 – $150,430 | 17,350 |
| Raleigh | $104,030 +2% | $78,470 – $152,010 | 1,710 |
| Hartford | $103,790 +1% | $77,500 – $131,280 | 2,830 |
| Miami | $103,740 +1% | $75,490 – $163,020 | 3,360 |
| Austin | $103,610 +1% | $62,790 – $169,370 | 3,440 |
| Philadelphia | $103,370 +1% | $78,600 – $160,490 | 6,170 |
| Nashville | $102,540 +0% | $76,280 – $133,400 | 2,000 |
| Atlanta | $102,300 +-0% | $76,130 – $156,750 | 4,800 |
| Charlotte | $102,090 +-0% | $75,670 – $140,000 | 2,680 |
| Chicago | $101,760 -1% | $74,420 – $155,480 | 12,750 |
| Buffalo | $101,260 -1% | $75,150 – $142,420 | 1,580 |
| Tampa | $100,670 -2% | $62,770 – $144,030 | 2,090 |
| Pittsburgh | $98,190 -4% | $67,840 – $140,540 | 2,140 |
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.
Outlook
BLS projects much faster than average growth for about 365,100 industrial engineers. BLS ties the demand to companies trying to lower costs by optimizing production, managing supply chains and logistics, and adding automation.
BLS Employment Projections via O*NET OnLine. Projections cover Industrial Engineers as a whole.
Who hires
Most industrial engineers work in manufacturing, but a large share work for consulting and technical services firms.
| Industry | Share of jobs | What industrial engineers do there |
|---|---|---|
| Transportation equipment manufacturing | 15% | Vehicle, aircraft and parts assembly lines, plant layout and supplier quality |
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 14% | Consulting on operations, process design and efficiency for clients |
| Computer and electronic product manufacturing | 11% | Yield, throughput and test process work in electronics plants |
| Machinery manufacturing | 8% | Production planning and cost reduction for equipment makers |
| Fabricated metal product manufacturing | 6% | Shop-floor methods, labor standards and scrap reduction |
Share of industrial engineer jobs by industry, BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook. BLS does not publish this guide's pay figures by industry.
Compare
Manufacturing and quality engineers are benchmarked on the same BLS occupation, so their figures match. Mechanical engineers earn about $1,670 more at the median; process engineers, benchmarked on chemical engineering, about $22,600 more.
| Role | BLS median | 2027 estimate | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial Engineer | $102,440 | $109,000 | Much faster than average |
| Manufacturing Engineer | $102,440 | $109,000 | Much faster than average |
| Quality Engineer | $102,440 | $109,000 | Much faster than average |
| Mechanical Engineer | $104,110 | $110,500 | Much faster than average |
| Process Engineer | $125,040 | $133,000 | Faster than average |
FAQ
Industrial engineers earned a median of $102,440 in May 2025, according to BLS, or $49.25 an hour. The middle half earned between $83,600 and $129,250, and the top tenth more than $159,860. With two years of wage growth at 3.1%, the 2027 planning median is about $109,000.
New-graduate offers are not a BLS statistic. The 10th percentile was $74,370 and the 25th $83,600 in May 2025, which makes industrial engineering's floor relatively high: the 10th percentile is only about $28,070 below the median. BLS says the typical entry requirement is a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering or a related field such as mechanical or electrical engineering.
BLS projects much faster than average growth through 2035 and about 23,100 openings a year, from a base of about 365,100 jobs. BLS links the demand to companies lowering costs through better production processes, supply chain and logistics work, and automation. Metro gaps are relatively narrow, about $34,040 between the highest- and lowest-paying metros in this guide.
For federal statistics, they are grouped together. O*NET classifies manufacturing engineers under Industrial Engineers, so both titles use the same BLS pay figures. In practice, manufacturing engineers usually focus on making a specific product, while industrial engineers work on the system around it: people, flow, layout and cost.
No, not for most jobs. BLS says licensure is not required for entry-level industrial engineer positions, and experienced engineers may obtain a Professional Engineer license. Most industrial engineering work happens inside manufacturing and service companies rather than on stamped public designs.
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