Talent Maps / Jacksonville / Civil Engineers

Jacksonville Civil Engineer Talent Map (2026)

What civil engineers earn in metro Jacksonville, which firms and public owners employ them, where in the metro they work, and the highway, port, transit and utility projects competing for them.

Hiring civil engineers in Jacksonville?

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 civil engineers in the Jacksonville metro area (Duval, Clay, St. Johns, Nassau and Baker counties). Pay figures come from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey (May 2025), and the demand picture uses project data published from 2025 to 2026. Our civil engineering recruiters update it as new data comes out. See also our Jacksonville structural, mechanical and electrical engineer talent maps.

$102,280Median civil engineer pay in metro JacksonvilleBLS, May 2025

$161,180+What the top 10% of Jacksonville civil engineers earnBLS, May 2025

$1.2BAnticipated construction cost of the 46 mile First Coast ExpresswayRS&H

$247MI-95 widening near downtown, due in spring 2028FDOT, via News4JAX, 2025

$420MJacksonville harbor deepening, 40 feet to 47 feet through Blount IslandJAXPORT

$400M+JTA Ultimate Urban Circulator if all three phases are builtJacksonville Daily Record, 2026

Civil engineer salaries in Jacksonville

The median civil engineer in metro Jacksonville earns $102,280 a year, $3,710 above the Florida median of $98,570 and $1,440 above the national median of $100,840. The hourly median is $49.17. Jacksonville does not lead at the very top, though. Its 90th percentile of $161,180 is below the Florida figure of $166,680 and the national figure of $163,220.

Annual pay percentile	Jacksonville metro	Florida	United States
10th percentile	$63,590	$58,640	$68,240
25th percentile	$79,780	$76,740	$79,930
Median	$102,280	$98,570	$100,840
75th percentile	$127,830	$128,450	$129,680
90th percentile	$161,180	$166,680	$163,220

Civil Engineers (SOC 17-2051). Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025, via O*NET OnLine. Wage surveys run about a year behind current offers.

Civil engineering technicians, the drafters, inspectors and field techs who support design teams, earn a median of $58,110 in Jacksonville, below the Florida median of $63,410. Pay ranges from $44,270 at the 10th percentile to $90,210 at the 90th.

What the spread means in practice: Jacksonville’s median is $1,540 above Orlando’s $100,740, and its 25th percentile of $79,780 is higher than both Orlando’s $78,810 and the Florida figure of $76,740. Entry and mid-level engineers are paid well here against the state. At the top, the statewide 90th percentile is $5,500 higher than Jacksonville’s.

Where Jacksonville’s civil engineers work

Local and regional design firms

England-Thims & Miller, founded in 1982 and based in Jacksonville, offers engineering, surveying, planning, landscape architecture and construction administration. BGE Inc., a Jacksonville civil engineer, is the engineer on the Cecil Commerce Center manufacturing site application.

RS&H is owner’s representative and engineer of record for FDOT District 2 on the First Coast Expressway.

Contractors and design-builders

Haskell, a Jacksonville-based design-build firm founded in 1965, had about 2,400 employees in 2025 and built EverBank Stadium.

Sacyr Construction USA won a $229 million contract for the northern Clay County segment of the First Coast Expressway, including 26 bridges.

Public owners

FDOT District 2 and Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise own the expressway and I-95 work. JEA serves more than 1 million residents in Duval, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties with water, sewer and electric service.

JAXPORT, the Jacksonville Transportation Authority and the Jacksonville Aviation Authority run the port, transit and airport programs.

Land developers

Hillwood is master developer of AllianceFlorida at Cecil Commerce Center and has built about 4 million square feet of an obligation to deliver 7 million by 2030. Scannell Properties holds the ground lease for Boeing’s expansion at Cecil Airport.

Where the talent sits: Jacksonville submarkets

Downtown and Southbank

TransportationSite

The Downtown Investment Authority counts $8.8 billion in projects, with $2.23 billion under construction. JTA’s autonomous Bay Street corridor, called NAVI, launched in mid-2025.

Northside and the port

PortHighway

JAXPORT’s 47 foot channel runs through Blount Island. The I-95 widening near Emerson Street is a $247 million job, and the I-95/I-295 north interchange has run past $176 million.

Westside and Cecil Commerce Center

Land developmentUtilities

Hillwood has proposed a 1,006,880 square foot building on a 243.52 acre grading area. Boeing’s South Yard Phase II hangar at Cecil would add about 201,714 square feet on 35.8 acres.

Clay County

HighwayLand development

An 18 mile stretch of the First Coast Expressway from Blanding Boulevard to U.S. 17 opened in August 2025. Clay County also passed a one-year data center moratorium in June 2026.

St. Johns County

BridgeHighway

The expressway’s third phase, about $1.2 billion with a new St. Johns River bridge, is expected to finish in 2030. The new bridge has 65 feet of clearance, against 45 feet at the Shands Bridge.

What’s driving demand for civil engineers in Jacksonville

First Coast Expressway. The 46 mile toll road crosses Duval, Clay and St. Johns counties and is expected to be fully open in 2030. RS&H lists phase costs of $208 million (Duval, finished), $409 million (Clay) and $595 million plus $516 million (St. Johns).
I-95 and I-295. The I-95 North project near downtown is $247 million and adds lanes, raises the profile for sight distance and replaces bridges at Emerson Street and San Diego Road. FDOT expects it to finish in spring 2028.
JAXPORT. The $420 million harbor deepening reached 47 feet through Blount Island in May 2022. JAXPORT also lists a $54 million Berth 20 for autos due in 2027 and a project to raise overhead powerlines to 205 feet of clearance by the end of 2026.
Transit. JTA’s Ultimate Urban Circulator would cost more than $400 million if fully built: $65 million for the first phase, $247 million to renovate the Skyway and $95 million for expansion to Brooklyn, San Marco, Springfield and the Southbank.
Industrial site work. Hillwood’s Cecil site and the Boeing hangar both need earthmoving, drainage and utility work. A 24 hour manufacturer at Cecil has asked JEA for an average of 581,491 gallons of water a day.
Utilities. JEA is pursuing a 640 megawatt gas plant at the St. Johns River Power Park site; that plant is an electric project, but the same utility also decides water and sewer service for new industrial sites.

Civil specialties tied to these projects

Transportation and roadway design for the expressway, I-95 and I-295 and FDOT District 2 work.
Bridge and structures engineers for the new St. Johns River crossing and for work like Sacyr’s 26 bridges in Clay County.
Port and marine civil engineers for JAXPORT berths, terminals and the overhead powerline program.
Water, wastewater and stormwater engineers for JEA and for industrial users with large water demand.
Site and land development engineers for Cecil, Clay County and St. Johns County growth.

The talent pipeline

University of North Florida. UNF’s BS in civil engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. UNF also offers electrical, mechanical and advanced manufacturing engineering degrees.
Licensing. Senior roles usually require a Florida PE license from the Florida Board of Professional Engineers, which requires the FE and PE exams.
Data centers. Large data center sites also need site civil engineers, though three nearby counties paused new projects in 2026. See our US data center map for market context.

What this means if you’re hiring

Pay the mid-career market. The 25th percentile of $79,780 is above Florida and Orlando, so junior offers below that will struggle.
Price senior roles above $127,830. That is the 75th percentile. Top-end pay of $161,180 at the 90th percentile trails the state figure of $166,680, so well-run offers can still win licensed PEs.
Expect public work to run for years. The expressway runs to 2030 and the I-95 widening to spring 2028.
Build from UNF and the firms already here. Haskell, England-Thims & Miller and RS&H all work from Jacksonville, so hiring often means drawing from each other.

Need civil engineers in Jacksonville?

Apollo Technical has recruited engineers since 2010. Our recruiting teams place civil, transportation, water and site development engineers on a contract, contract-to-hire and direct hire basis.

Call 813.701.2797 or see our Jacksonville engineering recruiters page.

Hire civil engineers

Frequently asked questions

How much do civil engineers make in Jacksonville?

The median civil engineer salary in metro Jacksonville is $102,280 a year, according to May 2025 BLS data. The middle half earn between $79,780 and $127,830, and the top 10% earn $161,180 or more.

Do civil engineers earn more in Jacksonville or Orlando?

Jacksonville, by a small margin. Its median is $102,280, against $100,740 in Orlando. Orlando’s 90th percentile is higher, at $165,320 against $161,180. See our Orlando civil engineer talent map.

Who hires civil engineers in Jacksonville?

Design firms such as England-Thims & Miller, BGE and RS&H, builders such as Haskell and Sacyr, and public owners such as FDOT District 2, Florida’s Turnpike Enterprise, JEA, JAXPORT and JTA.

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