How much do structural engineers make in 2026?
Structural engineers are read here against the BLS civil engineers series: OEWS May 2025 gives the SOC 17-2051 national median as $100,840 a year ($48.48 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $68,240 and the top 10% at $163,220. This is a broad match: the civil engineering code covers transportation, water, geotechnical, site development and structural practice together, so it describes civil engineering generally rather than structural design specifically. Structural engineers typically sit at and above that midpoint, and licensure explains most of the movement. The Professional Engineer licence permits sealing engineering documents and taking responsible charge, which is the gate between working under supervision and owning design. Above it sits the Structural Engineer licence, a separate credential required for certain structures — and, in a few states, for structural practice generally — which carries a further premium because it is harder to obtain and narrower in supply. Practice area matters too: high seismic regions, tall buildings, long-span structures, industrial and blast or progressive-collapse work all pay above routine low-rise design. Firm ownership and principal roles sit at the top of the band. Employment is projected to grow 5% through 2034 with roughly 23,600 openings a year. → Full structural engineer career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $100,840 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Structural Engineers earn a national median $100,840/yr ($48.48/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 17-2051); the P10 to P90 range is $68,240 to $163,220.
- The figures come from the broad civil engineers series covering transportation, water, geotechnical and structural practice — structural engineers typically sit at and above its $100,840 midpoint.
- Two licence tiers matter: the Professional Engineer licence permits sealing documents and responsible charge, while the separate Structural Engineer licence carries a further premium and narrower supply.
- High seismic regions, tall buildings, long-span, industrial and blast-resistant practice pay above routine low-rise design inside the $68,240 to $163,220 band.
US Structural Engineer Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do structural engineers 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 17-2051; 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 17-2051, 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 a structural engineer earn at each career stage?
Structural pay follows licensure tier and the difficulty of the structures designed. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 17-2051, a broad civil engineering series.
By State
Which states pay structural engineers the most in 2026?
State figures are modeled estimates — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers salary-calculator state wage index — not BLS state observations, and they carry the pooling caveat from a broad civil series. Licensure is state-administered, and the states that require a separate Structural Engineer licence for certain work create genuinely different markets that a wage index cannot show.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($115,970), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
structural engineer pay by state — all 1 state guide
By Metro
Which cities pay structural engineers the most?
Metro figures are modeled — national median times state wage index times published metro index — not BLS MSA observations. Structural consultancies concentrate in major metros, and high seismic and tall-building practice is geographically specific in ways the metro index only partly reflects.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise a structural engineer’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 structural engineer pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Structural Engineers 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 structural engineer wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a structural engineer 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
Structural Engineer Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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