Talent Maps / Austin / Architects

Austin Architect Talent Map (2026)

What architects earn in Austin, which firms employ them, where their studios sit and the convention center, medical, airport and school projects shaping the market.

Hiring architects in Austin?

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 architects in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metro area. Pay figures come from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey (May 2025), firm figures from AIA Austin and the firms themselves, and market data from 2025 and 2026. Our Austin architectural recruiters update it as new data comes out. See also our Austin CAD designer, structural engineer and civil engineer talent maps.

$96,600Median architect pay in AustinBLS, May 2025

$91,140Median landscape architect pay in Austin, against $79,870 nationallyBLS, May 2025

$78,390Median interior designer pay in Austin, against $65,160 in TexasBLS, May 2025

$1.6BAustin Convention Center redevelopment, reopening planned for early 2029KXAN

$5BUT Austin medical center, including an MD Anderson hospital, due December 2030InnovationMap, 2026

23.4%Austin office vacancy in Q2 2026CBRE

Architect salaries in Austin

The median architect in metro Austin earns $96,600 a year, about $2,100 more than the Texas median of $94,490 and about $2,700 below the national median of $99,280. Austin pays slightly less than Houston, where the median is $97,590, and more than Dallas-Fort Worth at $93,840. Austin’s 75th percentile ($110,960) is below the Texas figure, but its top 10% earn $150,230 or more, above the state’s $142,130.

Annual pay percentile	Austin metro	Texas	United States
10th percentile	$62,160	$60,730	$62,300
25th percentile	$77,220	$76,730	$77,960
Median	$96,600	$94,490	$99,280
75th percentile	$110,960	$121,670	$126,550
90th percentile	$150,230	$142,130	$161,420

Architects, except landscape and naval (SOC 17-1011). Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS, May 2025, via O*NET OnLine.

Related roles in Austin: landscape architects earn a median of $91,140 (Texas $89,220), interior designers $78,390 (Texas $65,160) and architectural and civil drafters $74,230 (Texas $63,320). All three are paid well above the state median.

Where Austin’s architects work

Large firms’ Austin studios

Page, part of Stantec since August 2025, listed 165 employees and 45 registered architects in Austin. Gensler, in Austin since 2007, listed 100 employees and 25 registered architects, and Perkins&Will 47 and 19.

HKS and Corgan also run Austin offices. Headcounts are self-reported to AIA Austin on pages dated 2022 and 2023.

Founded in Austin

O’Connell Robertson (1950, 50 employees), Pfluger Architects (1972, 28 employees, K-12 focus), STG Design (1976, 84 employees), Studio8 Architects (2003, 50 employees) and Michael Hsu Office of Architecture (2005, 75 employees) all started in Austin.

Design studios

Clayton Korte (31 employees) and McKinney York (30 employees), both founded in 1983, have offices in Austin and San Antonio. Dick Clark + Associates (1979), Bercy Chen Studio (2001) and Miró Rivera Architects (2000) are smaller Austin practices.

Newcomers and owners

San Antonio’s Overland Partners opened an Austin office in April 2024 by absorbing Sanders Architecture’s 7-person team.

UT Austin, the airport, the City of Austin and the school districts hire architects and manage design contracts.

Where the talent sits: Austin submarkets

Downtown

Large firmsConvention center

Page on West Cesar Chavez, Gensler on Lavaca and HKS on San Jacinto, close to the convention center rebuild.

Central and west Austin

Design studiosMid-size firms

STG Design on West 6th, Studio8 on West 5th, Miró Rivera on Powell Street, and Clayton Korte on North Lamar. Michael Hsu Office of Architecture is on Houston Street.

East Austin

Design studiosSmall firms

Perkins&Will on Comal Street, McKinney York and Dick Clark + Associates on East 7th, and Bercy Chen Studio on Shady Lane.

South Austin and the airport

AviationK-12

O’Connell Robertson on Barton Springs Road, Pfluger on East Riverside and Corgan on South 1st. The AUS expansion is to the southeast.

Round Rock, Hays and the suburbs

K-12Public sector

Round Rock ISD’s $933 million bond and Hays CISD’s $962.6 million bond fund school construction in Williamson and Hays counties.

What’s shaping the Austin architecture market

Convention center. The $1.6 billion Austin Convention Center redevelopment, designed by an LMN and Page joint venture with Jobe Corral and Edward Mulhausen as associate architects, covers 1,437,569 square feet. The building closed in April 2025 and is due to reopen in early 2029.
Medical. UT Austin’s medical center, which includes an MD Anderson hospital, is now estimated at $5 billion and about 2.5 million square feet, up from $2.9 billion. The Regents approved the $1 billion first phase in August 2026, with completion due in December 2030. SOM and Shepley Bulfinch lead design, with O’Connell Robertson on the team.
Airport. SOM leads design of AUS’s new Arrivals and Departures Hall with Michael Hsu Office of Architecture and McKinney York. City Council authorized $45 million for its design and $820 million for construction, plus $72 million and $1.031 billion for the 26-gate Concourse B. The hall opens in the early 2030s.
Schools. Round Rock ISD passed a $933 million bond in November 2024. Hays CISD passed about $962.6 million and Dripping Springs ISD about $402.3 million in May 2025. Manor ISD has a $400 million bond on the November 3, 2026 ballot. Austin ISD’s last bond was $2.44 billion in 2022.
Office and towers. Office vacancy was 23.4% in Q2 2026 by CBRE’s measure. Waterline, designed by KPF with HKS as architect of record, adds 2,329,000 square feet.
Light rail. Phase 1 of Austin’s light rail is estimated at over $8.2 billion for 9.8 miles and 15 stations. Construction starts in 2027, with trains in 2033.

The talent pipeline

UT Austin. The School of Architecture has three NAAB-accredited degrees: the B.Arch (161 credit hours), the first professional M.Arch (96 hours) and the advanced standing M.Arch (60 hours). Its next accreditation visit is in 2026.
Austin Community College. ACC’s architectural BIM and CAD program offers an associate degree specialization and a 27-credit certificate, teaching AutoCAD, Revit and 3ds Max. It trains drafters and BIM technicians for architecture firms.

What this means if you’re hiring

Healthcare and aviation work runs into the 2030s. The medical center and the airport will keep architects with those portfolios busy for years.
Senior pay runs high. Austin’s top 10% earn $150,230 or more, above the Texas figure, so budget near that level for experienced project architects.
K-12 experience is in demand. Four suburban districts have passed or proposed bonds since 2024.
Recruit from UT Austin. Its B.Arch and M.Arch programs are the metro’s main source of new architects.

Need architects in Austin?

Apollo Technical has recruited for architecture and engineering firms since 2010. Our recruiting teams place architects, project architects and designers on a contract, contract-to-hire and direct hire basis.

Call 512.686.1181 or see our Austin architectural recruiters page.

Hire architects in Austin

Frequently asked questions

How much do architects make in Austin?

The median architect salary in metro Austin is $96,600 a year, according to May 2025 BLS data. The middle half earn between $77,220 and $110,960, and the top 10% earn $150,230 or more.

Do architects earn more in Austin or San Antonio?

Austin. The median architect in metro Austin earns $96,600, against $84,130 in metro San Antonio. Houston’s median is $97,590.

What are the largest architecture firms in Austin?

By the headcounts firms report to AIA Austin, Page (now part of Stantec), Gensler, STG Design, Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, O’Connell Robertson and Studio8 have the largest Austin offices.

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