Electrical Engineer Salary (2026)
Typical pay is $120,630 a year, with most electrical engineers earning between $92,830 and $152,950. Based on the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
Salary Calculator›Electrical Engineer
Nationally, the typical electrical engineer earns $120,630 a year. Early-career pay starts around $92,830, experienced electrical engineers earn $152,950 or more, and the top 10% make over $184,300. About 198,750 people work in this occupation in the US. Pay is highest in New Mexico ($158,520) and, among metro areas, in San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA ($187,060).
Electrical Engineer salary in the United States
Annual pay, BLS survey of May 2025
What electrical engineers do
Electrical engineers design and test electrical systems and equipment, including power distribution, substations, motors, lighting and building electrical systems. They work for utilities, consulting firms, manufacturers and data center builders. A bachelor's degree is standard, and engineers who seal drawings for public projects need a PE license.
Electrical Engineer salary by state
Typical annual pay for electrical engineers in every state where BLS publishes figures, highest first.
| State | Typical | Early career | Experienced |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Mexico | $158,520 | $127,540 | $196,240 |
| California | $144,040 | $106,100 | $185,520 |
| District of Columbia | $143,000 | $111,530 | $173,790 |
| New Hampshire | $135,710 | $103,460 | $169,020 |
| Washington | $132,710 | $103,910 | $166,160 |
| Texas | $129,450 | $95,130 | $164,730 |
| Idaho | $129,340 | $101,160 | $154,900 |
| Massachusetts | $127,720 | $100,010 | $160,910 |
| Delaware | $126,970 | $100,430 | $141,150 |
| Alaska | $125,970 | $96,210 | $137,840 |
| Alabama | $125,630 | $98,220 | $153,280 |
| New Jersey | $125,370 | $98,510 | $147,640 |
| Oregon | $125,160 | $100,460 | $141,010 |
| Maryland | $125,150 | $96,740 | $164,080 |
| Louisiana | $123,710 | $92,930 | $157,970 |
| Colorado | $120,760 | $98,090 | $147,040 |
| Virginia | $119,030 | $95,450 | $148,320 |
| New York | $119,010 | $91,580 | $144,250 |
| Missouri | $118,670 | $94,230 | $157,990 |
| Maine | $114,620 | $97,590 | $133,580 |
| West Virginia | $113,420 | $88,610 | $132,720 |
| Wyoming | $111,740 | $93,440 | $127,290 |
| Vermont | $111,310 | $91,960 | $138,270 |
| Pennsylvania | $110,820 | $91,390 | $136,300 |
| North Dakota | $110,810 | $83,380 | $129,640 |
| North Carolina | $110,130 | $79,370 | $148,330 |
| Minnesota | $109,510 | $94,100 | $137,970 |
| Illinois | $107,860 | $87,360 | $131,960 |
| Oklahoma | $107,760 | $89,250 | $134,190 |
| Nevada | $107,400 | $86,390 | $135,660 |
| Nebraska | $107,260 | $83,790 | $125,830 |
| Hawaii | $106,350 | $78,810 | $130,360 |
| Michigan | $106,070 | $87,080 | $132,440 |
| Iowa | $105,820 | $93,980 | $127,530 |
| Utah | $105,720 | $86,850 | $141,020 |
| Mississippi | $104,990 | $80,760 | $130,490 |
| Florida | $104,780 | $80,860 | $131,550 |
| Tennessee | $104,450 | $84,220 | $132,050 |
| Connecticut | $104,160 | $85,930 | $135,230 |
| Indiana | $102,670 | $81,690 | $127,190 |
| Kansas | $102,630 | $82,900 | $128,920 |
| Ohio | $100,620 | $82,240 | $126,730 |
| Arizona | $100,550 | $82,420 | $134,300 |
| Wisconsin | $99,700 | $82,200 | $123,120 |
| South Dakota | $98,980 | $89,260 | $108,640 |
| Kentucky | $98,550 | $77,290 | $117,150 |
| South Carolina | $98,440 | $75,540 | $128,060 |
| Arkansas | $96,860 | $79,520 | $115,810 |
| Montana | $87,360 | $76,400 | $112,760 |
Highest-paying metro areas
| Metro area | Typical |
|---|---|
| 1. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $187,060 |
| 2. Slidell-Mandeville-Covington, LA | $167,010 |
| 3. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $166,030 |
| 4. Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $164,880 |
| 5. Albuquerque, NM | $163,720 |
| 6. Vallejo, CA | $160,060 |
| 7. Manchester-Nashua, NH | $159,360 |
| 8. Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | $145,360 |
| 9. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $140,210 |
| 10. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $139,780 |
| 11. Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $137,030 |
| 12. San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | $136,240 |
| 13. Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | $136,190 |
| 14. Idaho Falls, ID | $136,100 |
| 15. Fresno, CA | $134,780 |
Pay in Apollo's markets
| Metro | Typical |
|---|---|
| Atlanta | Not published |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $124,390 |
| Houston | $131,070 |
| Austin | $145,360 |
| Charlotte | $103,360 |
| Raleigh | $130,240 |
| San Antonio | $103,520 |
| Chicago | $113,520 |
| Orlando | $119,080 |
| Tampa | $102,110 |
| Miami | $102,800 |
| Jacksonville | $116,480 |
| Greenville-Spartanburg | $101,620 |
| Columbia, SC | $101,320 |
| Charleston, SC | $110,030 |
| Savannah | $121,240 |
Related engineering salaries
Electrical Engineer salary FAQs
How much does a electrical engineer make in the US?
The typical (median) electrical engineer in the US earns $120,630 a year, or about $58.00 an hour (BLS, May 2025). Half earn more and half earn less.
What is the entry-level salary for a electrical engineer in the US?
Early-career electrical engineers in the US typically earn around $92,830 (the 25th percentile), and the lowest-paid 10% earn under $76,550. Degree, internships, licenses and the industry all move starting pay.
How much do experienced electrical engineers earn in the US?
Experienced electrical engineers in the US earn $152,950 or more (the 75th percentile), and the top 10% earn over $184,300.
Which state pays electrical engineers the most?
New Mexico has the highest typical pay for electrical engineers at $158,520 a year. The highest-paying metro area is San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA at $187,060 (BLS, May 2025).
Are electrical engineers in demand?
BLS projects employment in this occupation to grow 9.9% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% for all jobs, with about 11,400 openings a year nationally as people retire, change jobs or the field grows.
Hiring electrical engineers?
Where these numbers come from
Pay figures come from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program (OEWS), which surveys about 1.1 million employer locations and is the government's main source of pay by occupation and location. This page uses the May 2025 survey, released in 2026, and updates itself when BLS publishes the next year's figures. Job outlook comes from the BLS Employment Projections for 2025–35. Cost of living comes from the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities for 2024, where the US average is 100.
Pay is base wages and salary before tax. It does not include bonuses, overtime, benefits or equity. Early career is the 25th percentile (a quarter of workers earn less), Typical is the median and Experienced is the 75th percentile. The bar shows the full range from the 10th to the 90th percentile. The salary rank check estimates a percentile by drawing straight lines between those five published points.
BLS groups some job titles together. Controls engineers, for example, are counted with electrical engineers, and CAD designers with drafters. Each result names the BLS occupation it uses so you can see exactly what is being measured. BLS does not publish every occupation in every area, for example when too few people in a job were surveyed or when a figure does not meet its reliability standards. When a metro figure is missing, the calculator shows the state figure, or the national figure if the state is also missing, and says so.
BLS occupation used on this page: Electrical Engineers (SOC 17-2071).