How much do environmental compliance specialists make in 2026?
Environmental compliance specialists are counted in the BLS compliance officers series: OEWS May 2025 puts the SOC 13-1041 national median at $80,730 a year ($38.81 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $48,220 and the top 10% at $133,720. That series is broad by design — 417,070 compliance officers across every regulatory domain, from financial and health and safety to environmental — so the figure is a compliance-profession band rather than an environmental-specific measurement. Where an environmental compliance specialist lands inside it is set mainly by what is at risk. In a heavy industrial setting — refining, chemicals, mining, power generation, waste management — the specialist keeps the permits that allow the site to operate, and a lapse can shut down production or trigger enforcement penalties measured in millions; those roles pay in the upper half of the band. In light manufacturing, distribution or municipal settings, the work is largely reporting and recordkeeping and pays around or below the median. The second lever is technical depth: specialists who can interpret air permit conditions, run emissions calculations, manage wastewater discharge monitoring and handle agency inspections without an outside consultant are considerably more valuable than those who administer a checklist. Employment is projected to grow 3.0% through 2034 with roughly 33,300 openings a year. → Full environmental compliance specialist 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 Specialists 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.
- The BLS compliance officers series pools every regulatory domain across 417,070 workers, so $80,730 is the compliance profession's band rather than an environmental-specific figure.
- What is at risk sets the pay: specialists protecting an operating permit at a refinery, chemical plant or power station sit in the upper half of the band; reporting roles in light industry sit below the median.
- Technical depth — reading permit conditions, running emissions calculations, handling discharge monitoring and agency inspections without a consultant — is what separates the top of the range from the middle.
US Environmental Compliance Specialist Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do environmental compliance specialists 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 specialist earn at each career stage?
Compliance pay follows the consequence of the permits and programmes you are trusted to hold. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 13-1041.
By State
Which states pay environmental compliance specialists the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the BLS national compliance officer median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations, and the series covers all compliance domains rather than environmental work alone. Real variation comes from state regulatory programmes: states running their own programmes stricter than the federal floor generate more permitting and reporting work and more specialist roles.
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 specialists the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national compliance 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. Metros with concentrated heavy industry carry the highest-paying compliance roles.
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 specialist’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 specialist pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Environmental Compliance Specialists 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 specialist wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does an environmental compliance specialist 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 Specialist Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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