What is the salary and career path for a land surveyor?
Land surveyors are counted in Surveyors, SOC 17-1022, an exact match whose OEWS May 2025 median is $75,440 a year ($36.27 an hour), from $46,880 at the 10th percentile to $125,590 at the 90th. It is a licensed profession: a bachelor's degree is increasingly the norm, followed by the NCEES Fundamentals of Surveying (FS) exam, years of experience under a licensed surveyor, and the Principles and Practice of Surveying (PS) exam to become a Professional Land Surveyor (PLS/RLS). BLS projects 4.4% employment growth over 2024–2034, with about 3,900 openings a year — a small occupation. Licensure to certify surveys is legally required, state by state.
- Land Surveyors earn a national median $75,440/yr ($36.27/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 17-1022); the top 10% clear $125,590.
- It is a licensed profession — a bachelor's degree plus the NCEES FS and PS exams and state experience earn the Professional Land Surveyor (PLS) license required to certify surveys.
- BLS projects 4.4% growth 2024–34 with about 3,900 openings a year across the small SOC 17-1022 occupation; the top 10% clear $125,590.
- The ladder runs survey technician ($46,880) to surveyor-in-training ($75,440 median) to licensed PLS ($98,130) to principal or firm owner at the $125,590 top decile.
Career Path
How do you become a land surveyor?
Survey technician / party chief
Running field crews, total stations and GNSS gear and processing data under a licensed surveyor; entry sits near the 10th percentile of $46,880.
Surveyor-in-training / project surveyor
Working toward licensure after passing the FS exam and gaining supervised experience, around the $75,440 median for SOC 17-1022.
Professional Land Surveyor (PLS)
Licensed to certify boundary surveys and plats and to seal work pays toward the 75th percentile of $98,130.
Principal / survey firm owner
Leading a survey department or owning a firm reaches the 90th percentile of $125,590 and beyond.
BLS Salary Data
Which state pays land surveyors the most in 2026?
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 17-1022. National median: $75,440. Full salary guide →
Pay Comparison
How does land surveyor pay compare to related roles?
Head-to-head against the roles land surveyors most often weigh against. BLS OEWS May 2025 medians.
Takeaway: land surveyors rank 1 of 4 on median pay among the comparable roles above, with a projected +4.4% employment change 2024–34 (BLS Employment Projections). Pay position and projected demand together are what determine how quickly land surveyors clear offers across the GlobalCybers placement network.
Methodology & Sources
How this guide is sourced and reviewed
Wages (BLS): All median and percentile figures are BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 17-1022 (land surveyors) and the matching SOC codes for each comparison role. OEWS is sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection, so treat it as a firm anchor rather than a spot rate.
Job growth: Projected 2024–34 employment change, and the average annual openings figure, are from the BLS Employment Projections program, by occupation. Openings are a per-year average over the projection decade, not a decade total.
Licensing & credentials:Requirements are drawn from the issuing state licensing boards and the certifying body behind each credential — not from third-party aggregators.
Demand signal:Any statement about how quickly this role clears offers reflects GlobalCybers placement request volume across the trailing 12 months — our own network data, offered as a directional real-world indicator alongside BLS, not a market-wide survey.
Credentials
What licences and certifications do land surveyors need?
The state-issued license required to certify boundary surveys and plats, earned through the NCEES FS and PS exams plus state experience and law exams. See all state licences →
The Fundamentals of Surveying and Principles and Practice of Surveying exams administered by NCEES that bracket the experience requirement for licensure.
Increasingly required by state boards; a surveying, geomatics or closely related degree from an ABET-accredited program is the standard base.
The NSPS Certified Survey Technician credential for field and office technicians on the path to licensure.
Tools & Software
What tools and software do land surveyors use on the job?
⚙️ Core Tools & Equipment
📊 BLS Employment Data, SOC 17-1022
Salary Levers
How do land surveyors earn above the $75,440 BLS median?
Licensure
Earning the PLS license is the single biggest lever, moving pay from the technician band near $46,880 toward and past the $75,440 median
Specialty and sector
Boundary, geodetic and energy/pipeline survey work pays above general residential surveying
Region
High-growth construction markets and high-cost states pay premiums over slower areas
Ownership and responsible charge
Leading a department or owning a firm and sealing work is what reaches the $98,130 seventy-fifth percentile and the $125,590 top decile
This Route vs. College
Is becoming a land surveyor worth it vs. a 4-year degree?
The entry route into this role, set against a four-year degree. Same starting line, side by side.
Entry-level (10th percentile) and all-level median wages: BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 17-1022. Student-debt figure: median federal borrower balance for bachelor's-degree completers. Starting-salary comparison is illustrative and varies by field and region.
FAQ
Land Surveyor Career, Frequently Asked Questions
Land Surveyor career research journey
Do your homework, then let the network do the rest.Get the job, then keep rising
FreeSet your intent, matching jobs come to you. No applying.
A roadmap to your next licence tier and higher pay band.
Once placed, we cover all certification, licence & career-guide fees.
Hiring land surveyors?
Get a verified shortlist of 3–5 qualified candidates in 48 hours
GlobalCybers verifies active state licenses, trade certifications, Intent and right-to-work status before any candidate reaches your portal. Flat $2,999/mo RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing), up to 3 concurrent roles, or a free trial (pay on hire). 90-day written guarantee.
Related · Land Surveyor
Everything for land surveyors in one place
Salary data, licensing, interview prep, and hiring, all cross-linked so you (and search engines) can move through the full land surveyor cluster.