Mechanical Engineers · SOC 17-2141

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Mechanical Engineers

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas

Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for mechanical engineers. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked (3 such areas are excluded here). Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.

Top 25 of 346 metro areas

Mechanical Engineers: metro areas with the highest published median annual wages, May 2025
#	Metro area	Median annual	Employment	Per 1,000 jobs
1	San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	$168,030	5,540	4.9
2	San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	$161,370	5,150	2.2
3	Baton Rouge, LA	$135,530	540	1.3
4	Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA	$132,920	190	1.9
5	Salinas, CA	$132,560	70	0.4
6	Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC	$128,740	980	4.2
7	Peoria, IL	$128,710	2,120	12.8
8	Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO	$128,180	4,530	2.8
9	Columbus, IN	$127,700	1,000	20.1
10	Lexington Park, MD	$127,650	670	9.5
11	Ann Arbor, MI	$127,310	2,280	10.4
12	Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	$126,990	5,390	1.7
13	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$126,590	4,500	2.2
14	Lake Charles, LA	$126,090	110	1.1
15	Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT	$125,780	650	1.6
16	Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX	$125,350	8,310	2.5
17	Midland, TX	$125,200	250	2.0
18	Kennewick-Richland, WA	$124,780	570	4.4
19	Boulder, CO	$124,360	1,130	5.9
20	Corpus Christi, TX	$124,340	280	1.5
21	Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	$123,900	8,780	1.4
22	Fairbanks-College, AK	$122,760	50	1.3
23	Cheyenne, WY	$122,500	60	1.3
24	Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX	$122,280	470	2.9
25	San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	$121,750	3,370	2.2

Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Mechanical Engineers overview.

About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.