How much do environmental compliance managers make in 2026?
Environmental compliance managers are counted in the BLS compliance officers series: OEWS May 2025 gives SOC 13-1041 a national median of $80,730 a year ($38.81 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $48,220 and the top 10% at $133,720 across 417,070 workers. That code is a catch-all for compliance work of every kind — financial, transportation, employment, environmental — and this site publishes several records against it, so the median describes compliance generally rather than environmental compliance specifically. Within the environmental subset, the variable that predicts pay best is permit scope: how many permits, of what complexity, the manager personally answers for. Someone maintaining a stormwater plan and a small quantity generator status at one site sits near the lower quartile. Someone holding a Title V air permit, an NPDES industrial discharge permit, RCRA large quantity generator status and a stormwater programme across multiple facilities — with the personal exposure that comes from signing certifications — sits in the upper quartile. Regulatory breadth is worth more here than years of service, because each permit type takes real time to learn and the penalty for misjudging one is enforcement. Employment is projected to grow 3% through 2034 with roughly 33,300 openings a year. → Full environmental compliance manager career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $80,730 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Environmental Compliance Managers earn a national median $80,730/yr ($38.81/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 13-1041); the P10 to P90 range is $48,220 to $133,720.
- Permit scope predicts pay better than tenure: the number and complexity of permits a manager personally certifies is what moves them through the $48,220 to $133,720 band.
- The published median describes compliance work of every kind across 417,070 workers, not environmental compliance specifically, so treat it as a floor for a permit-heavy role.
- Personal certification exposure — signing regulatory submissions under penalty provisions — is part of what the upper quartile is paying for.
US Environmental Compliance Manager Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do environmental compliance managers earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 13-1041; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 13-1041, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does an environmental compliance manager earn at each career stage?
Environmental compliance pay follows the regulatory breadth you can carry alone. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 13-1041.
By State
Which states pay environmental compliance managers the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the national compliance officer median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Environmental compliance demand tracks state programme complexity: states with delegated and augmented permitting regimes create more work per facility than the wage index reflects.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($92,840), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay environmental compliance managers the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations. Industrial corridors and new manufacturing clusters carry the permit-heavy roles at the top of this band.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise an environmental compliance manager’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does environmental compliance manager pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Environmental Compliance Managers sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify environmental compliance manager wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does an environmental compliance manager actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Environmental Compliance Manager Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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