The structural engineer salary in the United States can vary, depending on multiple factors. To help you get a general idea, these are a few annual structural engineering salaries provided by different authority sources:
As you can see, the structural engineers salary in America may be anywhere between approximately $60,000 and $83,000 a year, depending on the source. However, the source isn’t the only factor that can influence the average salary structural engineer professionals can expect. Learn about what can determine your structural engineer salary below.
Structural Engineer Salary Influencers
1. Industry
As far as industry is in discussion, there are two main aspects that can outline a senior or entry level structural engineer salary. Firstly, the specific subindustry you work in can help you predict your structural design engineer salary. The Bureau of Labor Statistics points out that 46% of structural engineers work in the Engineering services industry, while 13% work for the state government and 11% for local governments.
In addition to this, Payscale highlights structural engineer average salary differences from employer. A large company like Boeing or the Aecom Technology Group can offer a salary of structural engineer between $68,000 and $105,000 a year. On the other hand, smaller companies like the Thornton-Tomasetti Group provide structural engineer wages that range from $58,000 to $67,000 annually. If your structural engineer qualifications result in a starting salary for structural engineer, you might want to apply for smaller companies first until you gain some work experience to appeal to the larger ones.
2. Geographic Area
Most are surprised when they find out how big of an impact location can have on a structural engineer starting salary or even one for senior professionals. The structural engineer highest salary is in Alaska, with an average of $110,050 a year for employees in this field. However, this isn’t the only state that offers a six figure average salary for structural engineer. You can find a few more that exceed the $100k mark below, as well as some that come in pretty close:
- District of Columbia masters in structural engineering salary – $103,020
- Average salary for a structural engineer in California – $100,980
- Texas structural engineer salary – $97,900
- Average salary of a structural engineer in New Jersey – $95,160
- New York civil structural engineer salary – $91,110
But the average wage for structural engineer shouldn’t be the only aspect you keep in mind when researching locations. The employment rate that a state has is just as important, otherwise you’ll end up moving somewhere without having a chance of getting hired. According to the BLS, the states that employ the most structural engineers are:
- California
- Texas
- Florida
- New York
- Pennsylvania
Therefore, if you want a great junior or senior structural engineer salary, you should have California and New York among your main options.
All the same, you should be well-aware of the states with the lowest structural engineer salary estimates in the country. These are – excluding Guam and Puerto Rico – the following:
- North Dakota – $74,260
- Michigan – $74,050
- New Hampshire – $74,000
- South Dakota – $72,050
- Montana – $71,090
3. Experience
By now, we’re all pretty familiar with the idea that experience naturally increases your annual pay. You can always expect a gap between salaries estimates for beginners and experienced professionals. However, the gap is greater than you think for structural engineers. While a junior structural engineer salary is just about $60,000, a professional in their late career can make over $100,000 annually. The structural engineering starting salary gradually increases as the employee gains experience, with spikes at 5-10 years and 10-20 years too.
Working Hours and Environment
Structural engineers work full time, with about 1 in every 4 professionals working over 40 hours weekly. The working environment for structural engineers varies greatly, from offices to construction sites. Depending on your structural engineer job description, you might have to travel to specific working sites outside of your area.
Structural Engineer Salary by State
| State | Annual mean wage ($) |
|---|---|
| Alabama | 77850 |
| Alaska | 110050 |
| Arizona | 79480 |
| Arkansas | 77070 |
| California | 100980 |
| Colorado | 87510 |
| Connecticut | 88200 |
| Delaware | 86770 |
| District of Columbia | 103020 |
| Florida | 85280 |
| Georgia | 90220 |
| Guam | 61520 |
| Hawaii | 78950 |
| Idaho | 74900 |
| Illinois | 90310 |
| Indiana | 76160 |
| Iowa | 77630 |
| Kansas | 77850 |
| Kentucky | 75390 |
| Louisiana | 90610 |
| Maine | 75270 |
| Maryland | 85580 |
| Massachusetts | 90750 |
| Michigan | 74050 |
| Minnesota | 84020 |
| Mississippi | 80380 |
| Missouri | 76550 |
| Montana | 71090 |
| Nebraska | 81030 |
| Nevada | 86110 |
| New Hampshire | 74000 |
| New Jersey | 95160 |
| New Mexico | 89590 |
| New York | 91110 |
| North Carolina | 78350 |
| North Dakota | 74260 |
| Ohio | 77550 |
| Oklahoma | 74480 |
| Oregon | 82480 |
| Pennsylvania | 84490 |
| Puerto Rico | 56690 |
| Rhode Island | 84550 |
| South Carolina | 78350 |
| South Dakota | 72050 |
| Tennessee | 90760 |
| Texas | 97900 |
| Utah | 79990 |
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Bonuses and Benefit Packages
Owing to the nature of the occupation, structural engineers almost always have health benefits. In fact, a great 91% of employees have medical insurance. Even more so, 73% have dental benefits and 57% enjoy vision coverage, according to Payscale. These numbers are greater than most health benefit stats for other occupations.
The same source also reports that structural engineers can get a total bonus of up to $7,592 a year, based on performance, experience and other factors.
Job Outlook
Structural engineers can expect to have 8% more jobs until 2024, according to data provided by the BLS. This means that the percent change in employment for these professionals is close to the average of 7%. This can be considered good news for potential candidates, as quite a few occupations in the U.S. economy are facing a decline in their job outlook.
If you want to boost your chances of developing your career as a structural engineer, you can relocate to an area that has a high demand for this category of professionals. As a beginner, you don’t necessarily need to target the top-paying areas, as the main aim is to start your career. Nevertheless, if you can combine the idea of employment opportunities with decent pay, you should certainly take advantage of the opportunity.
Conclusion
In summary, the structural engineer salary can be quite the motivation for individuals who love engineering and want to make a satisfying living out of it. Those who move to top-paying states that also have high employment rates have greater chances of having the job of their dreams. The benefits, bonuses and other perks tied to the structural engineer salary are plenty of reasons to make engineering enthusiasts excited about this career opportunity. If you feel this path is for you, we recommend that you train well and take these influential factors into consideration.
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