Talent Maps / Dallas-Fort Worth / Mechanical Engineers

Dallas-Fort Worth Mechanical Engineer Talent Map (2026)

What mechanical engineers earn in Dallas-Fort Worth, which employers hold the talent, where in the Metroplex they work, and the aerospace, semiconductor and data center projects competing for them.

Hiring mechanical engineers in DFW?

A talent map shows where a group of professionals works, what they are paid and who else is trying to hire them. This one covers mechanical engineers in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro area. Pay figures come from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey (May 2025), and the demand picture uses company and market data published in 2025 and 2026. Our mechanical engineering recruiters update it as new data comes out. See also our DFW aerospace, industrial and manufacturing, civil, electrical and data center engineer talent maps.

$105,420Median mechanical engineer pay in Dallas-Fort WorthBLS, May 2025

$167,140+What the top 10% of DFW mechanical engineers earnBLS, May 2025

18,240Mechanical engineers employed in TexasProjections Central, 2024

1,350Projected mechanical engineering job openings a year in Texas through 2034Projections Central

19,000Employees at Lockheed Martin’s F-35 plant in Fort WorthLockheed Martin, January 2026

$40BTexas Instruments’ planned investment in up to four Sherman chip fabsTexas Instruments

Mechanical engineer salaries in Dallas-Fort Worth

The median mechanical engineer in Dallas-Fort Worth earns $105,420 a year, about $1,300 more than the national median of $104,110. The Texas median is higher still at $112,410, largely because Houston’s energy sector pays a median of $125,350. DFW’s top 10% earn $167,140 or more, slightly above the national figure.

Annual pay percentile	DFW metro	Texas	United States
10th percentile	$76,530	$75,810	$73,990
25th percentile	$87,200	$91,420	$84,130
Median	$105,420	$112,410	$104,110
75th percentile	$132,840	$145,090	$132,590
90th percentile	$167,140	$175,210	$164,340

Mechanical Engineers (SOC 17-2141). Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025, via O*NET OnLine. Wage surveys run about a year behind current offers.

Mechanical engineering technicians earn a median of $71,910 in DFW, ranging from $45,130 at the 10th percentile to $103,720 at the 90th. In the Sherman-Denison metro, where the new chip fabs are, the median mechanical engineer earns $90,070.

What the spread means in practice: DFW pays at or slightly above national rates at every level, but below Houston. An employer recruiting an experienced engineer from Houston, or competing with an aerospace prime, should plan on the 75th percentile ($132,840) or higher.

Where DFW’s mechanical engineers work

Mechanical engineers in the Metroplex work across four main kinds of employer, and the biggest of them are some of the largest engineering employers in the country.

Aerospace and defense

Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth plant has 19,000 employees and delivered a record 191 F-35s in 2025. Bell Textron is headquartered in Fort Worth with more than 5,000 employees in the area. Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control is in Grand Prairie.

RTX has more than 6,000 Raytheon employees in North Texas, and its Collins Aerospace unit is adding more than 570 jobs in Richardson. L3Harris runs 3.7 million square feet of aircraft modification facilities in Greenville.

Manufacturing and automotive

GM’s Arlington Assembly plant builds more than 1,350 vehicles a day and employed more than 5,400 people as of 2024. Peterbilt assembles trucks in Denton.

At AllianceTexas in north Fort Worth, Wistron is investing $761 million in AI server manufacturing with 800 jobs, and Embraer $70 million in an aircraft maintenance facility.

Semiconductors

Texas Instruments is headquartered in Dallas, runs two 300mm fabs in Richardson and started production at its first Sherman fab in December 2025. GlobalWafers opened a $3.5 billion silicon wafer plant in Sherman in 2025.

Fabs hire mechanical engineers for equipment, facilities, process cooling, ultrapure water and cleanroom systems. Qorvo also has a module assembly facility in Richardson.

HVAC, MEP and design firms

Lennox is headquartered in Richardson. Jacobs, one of the world’s largest engineering firms, is headquartered in downtown Dallas.

MEP design firms and contractors are hiring for data centers, hospitals and commercial buildings. CBRE reports rising demand for mechanical, electrical and plumbing equipment makers serving data centers. See our DFW data center talent map.

Where the talent sits: DFW submarkets

Mechanical engineering talent in the Metroplex clusters around a handful of very large employers. Commutes matter: few engineers will drive from Plano to west Fort Worth every day.

Fort Worth and Alliance

AerospaceDefenseManufacturing

Lockheed Martin, Bell headquarters and Bell’s new MV-75 parts factory, plus AllianceTexas, which counts 602 companies and 73,134 direct jobs.

Arlington and Grand Prairie

AutomotiveDefenseTest labs

GM Arlington Assembly, Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Bell’s drive systems test lab in Grand Prairie and its weapons integration lab in Arlington.

Richardson and Plano

SemiconductorsHVACDefense

TI’s Richardson fabs, Lennox headquarters, Collins Aerospace’s expansion, Raytheon and Qorvo along the Telecom Corridor.

Sherman-Denison

SemiconductorsFacilities

About an hour north of Dallas, TI’s Sherman fabs and GlobalWafers are building a new chipmaking cluster. Many engineers will need to relocate or commute from Collin County.

Dallas core

MEP designConsulting

Jacobs and TI headquarters, along with MEP design firms serving commercial, healthcare and data center clients across the metro.

What’s driving demand for mechanical engineers in DFW

Chip fabs in Sherman and Richardson. TI plans up to $40 billion for four Sherman fabs and about 3,000 jobs there. Its first Sherman fab began production in December 2025, and in July 2026 the state awarded TI a $33.6 million grant toward a $700 million expansion in Richardson.
GlobalWafers. The Sherman wafer plant opened with a $3.5 billion investment and plans another $4 billion, growing from 180 jobs to up to 650 by the end of 2028.
F-35 production. A $24 billion contract for 296 jets in Lots 18 and 19, finalized in September 2025, keeps the Fort Worth line busy after a record 2025.
Bell MV-75. Bell is building a $632 million, roughly 450,000 square foot parts factory in north Fort Worth for the Army’s new long-range assault aircraft, due in early 2027.
Data centers. CBRE counts 1,432.8 MW of data center capacity in DFW, the third-largest market in North America, with almost all of it leased. Every new campus needs cooling and mechanical design.
Texas CHIPS Act. The state’s semiconductor fund has received about $948 million since 2023, supporting new fab and research projects.

Mechanical specialties in demand

Aerospace structures, propulsion and drive systems engineers for Lockheed Martin and Bell.
Manufacturing and production engineers for GM, Peterbilt and the AllianceTexas plants.
Fab facilities and equipment engineers for TI and GlobalWafers.
HVAC and MEP design engineers for data centers, hospitals and commercial buildings.
Thermal and cooling engineers for data centers and electronics.
Test and reliability engineers for defense and aerospace programs.

The talent pipeline

UT Arlington. UTA’s mechanical engineering program has been ABET accredited since 1967 and its aerospace program since 1968. More than half of its undergraduates complete a co-op or internship.
UT Dallas. UTD’s BS in mechanical engineering is ABET accredited, and U.S. News ranks its graduate engineering school No. 89 for 2026.
SMU. The Lyle School of Engineering offers an ABET-accredited BS in mechanical engineering.
UNT. The University of North Texas had 544 students in its accredited mechanical and energy engineering program in fall 2025, plus 539 in mechanical engineering technology.
Growth. Texas is projected to grow from 18,240 mechanical engineers in 2024 to 21,630 in 2034, a 19% increase against 9% nationally, with about 1,350 openings a year. Read more in our Texas mechanical engineer statistics.
Licensing. MEP design roles that seal drawings need a Texas PE license from the Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.

What this means if you’re hiring

Know who you’re competing with. Lockheed Martin, Bell, RTX, TI and GM are hiring from the same pool. Smaller employers win on flexibility, project variety and speed, not size.
Price experienced roles above the median. Plan on the 75th percentile ($132,840) for senior engineers, and more if you’re recruiting from Houston.
Plan for clearances. Many defense roles need US citizenship and a security clearance, which shrinks the pool and lengthens hiring.
Recruit for Sherman early. The fabs are an hour north of Dallas. Relocation packages and a long lead time help.

Need mechanical engineers in Dallas-Fort Worth?

Apollo Technical has recruited engineers since 2010. Our recruiting teams place mechanical, HVAC, manufacturing and design engineers on a contract, contract-to-hire and direct hire basis.

Call 214.257.7733 or see our Dallas engineering recruiters page.

Hire mechanical engineers

Frequently asked questions

How much do mechanical engineers make in Dallas-Fort Worth?

The median mechanical engineer salary in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro is $105,420 a year, according to May 2025 BLS data. The middle half earn between $87,200 and $132,840, and the top 10% earn $167,140 or more.

How many mechanical engineers are there in Texas?

Texas employed about 18,240 mechanical engineers in 2024, and that number is projected to reach 21,630 by 2034, with roughly 1,350 openings a year.

Who hires the most mechanical engineers in DFW?

Aerospace and defense employers lead, including Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth and Grand Prairie, Bell, RTX and L3Harris. GM Arlington, Texas Instruments, GlobalWafers, Lennox and MEP design firms are also major employers.

Do mechanical engineers earn more in Dallas or Houston?

Houston pays more. The Houston metro median is $125,350, about $20,000 above DFW’s $105,420, mostly because of energy and petrochemical work. DFW’s market is broader, with aerospace, semiconductors, automotive and HVAC all hiring.

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